


The Perfect Sky is Torn

by Batsutousai



Series: Doctor Who/Harry Potter [4]
Category: Doctor Who (2005), Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Sarah Jane Adventures, Torchwood
Genre: Crossovers & Fandom Fusions, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2010-07-31
Updated: 2017-04-30
Packaged: 2017-10-20 05:53:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 23,081
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/209463
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Batsutousai/pseuds/Batsutousai
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sequel to <i>Dust in the Sky</i>. Between the Doctor's companions throwing themselves all over him and Harry's life on Earth, their love always manages to bring them together.</p><p> </p><p>  <a href="http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v692/LadyMarvolo/ForFics/?action=view&current=ThePerfectSkyIsTorn_sm--bylifelesslyndsey.jpg">
<img/></a></p><p> </p><p>The fic <i>The Future Doesn't Scare Me</i> technically comes between <i>Dust in the Sky</i> and this fic; some later chapters of <i>Future</i> may parallel this fic.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Beta'd by [Shara Lunison](http://archiveofourown.org/users/SharaLunison).
> 
>  **Disclaim Her:** I own neither the characters of  Doctor Who, nor of Harry Potter. Both worlds belong to their respective creators/controlling entities and I am only borrowing them for my own amusement. No money is being made off of this piece of fan fiction.  
> Some quotes in this fic are taken directly from episodes in Doctor Who, others have been changed to better fit Harry's inclusion.
> 
>  **A/N:** This is a sequel to a one-shot by me titled _Hanging by a Thread_ and a chaptered fic titled _Dust in the Sky_. You don't, necessarily, have to read that fic to understand what's going on, but there are some pre-developed, non-canon relationships that might need explaining. Please also note that there's a series of side-stories under the title _The Future Doesn't Scare Me_ that covers some of the relationships between the Torchwood members that Harry works with in this fic. There is also an adventure or two that Harry goes on during that series that may be mentioned in this one. Just a heads up.
> 
> Banners made by [lifelesslyndsey](http://www.fanfiction.net/u/2034540/), who is made of awesome. True fact.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Caz251 made a one-shot of this season, which was pretty funny. Link is as follows: [Before the Wedding](http://caz251.livejournal.com/94851.html)

It happened slowly, and they hadn't even noticed it at first. It wasn't until Ianto happened to walk in on a quiet discussion about Canary Wharf and not react any more than roll his eyes in the way he always did when he caught those who had travelled with the Doctor discussing things from their travels.

It was Jack that called their attention to it by asking, "Ianto? You remember Canary Wharf, right?"

"Jack!" Martha hissed.

But Ianto shrugged. "Nope," he said, then turned and left them with the tray he'd been carrying the coffee on.

"He doesn't remember Canary Wharf?" Harry asked, looking disbelievingly after the man. "How could he forget Canary Wharf?"

Jack shook his head. "I don't know. But I don't think he's the only one. I mentioned the day the Daleks stole Earth to Johnson and she looked at me like I'd lost my mind. How could anyone completely miss that event?"

"Snorkelling off the coast of Spain," Harry supplied, remembering one of Donna's many excuses for missing important events back when he'd first met her. "But, even then..."

"You don't just miss something like that," Martha agreed.

"But, we still remember these events," Mickey pointed out.

"We've travelled in time," Jack immediately offered. "Time travel gives you some immunity to changes in important events."

"Only some?" Mickey repeated, looking worried.

"If an event that's been altered is something too personal, you may still forget it," Jack explained. "Say if you got married and then, somehow, your marriage was erased from time. Chances are you won't remember your wedding, because it would have been too close to your heart for you to remember a life with it when you didn't have it."

"Sometimes, time travel still makes my head spin," Harry muttered, rubbing at said head.

"We should compile the important events we remember, just to make sure none of us were affected," Martha suggested.

"And then maybe run the list by the others?" Mickey added. "See what else they've forgotten."

"I'd rather we not worry them," Jack decided, shaking his head. "Feel free to bring events up around them and see if they react, but don't start reading off a list. Let them think it's a 'Doctor Thing'."

"Speaking of the Doctor," Harry added while Martha pulled a pad of paper and pen out of her medical coat, "we might want to try getting in contact with him. Perhaps he knows what's going on."

"We'll leave that to you," Jack replied. "Everyone remember the year that never was? Except Mickey."

"Because someone could really forget that nightmare," Martha muttered, writing it on the list while Harry nodded next to her.

And so it went.

-0-

Harry tried the Doctor a few times over the next week, but the phone always went straight to the voicemail he knew the man never checked. He did leave one message there, though, in case this incarnation was the sort who _would_ check it. (Honestly, he just hoped this Doctor didn't completely forget about the mobile. He wouldn't put it past him, but he knew Martha would kill him if he did that.)

Despite not hearing back, Harry really wasn't all that surprised when he popped into his flat one evening and found the TARDIS taking up space next to his front door. "Doctor?" he called, setting his jacket on the hook next to the door.

A man with a brilliant grin peeked out of the kitchen. "Harry!" he crowed and hurried around the dining room table to hug Harry.

Harry laughed and returned the hug, then pulled back a bit. "Well, let's see you, then," he said and laughed a bit more when the Doctor gleefully spun on the spot. Harry had to grab his arm to make him stop. "You're going to make yourself dizzy!"

The Doctor just grinned. "Haven't been dizzy yet!" he replied and tugged away to spin around some more.

"You're getting more and more barmy, aren't you?" Harry asked rhetorically.

The Doctor grinned at him and opened his mouth to comment, but the screech of the kettle stopped him and he spun and hurried off into the kitchen.

Harry followed him curiously and stopped in the doorway when he saw the minor mess his friend had made of his kitchen. "Do I want to ask?" he inquired of the piles of used tea bags surrounding the sink. The boxes the tea bags had come from were piled next to the stove where two mugs, the carton of milk and sugar pot sat.

"None of this tea tastes right," the Doctor explained, pouring himself another two cups and setting in new tea bags. Both cups had milk added to them, but only one got sugar.

"Have you tried it without the milk?" Harry asked, leaning back against the doorway and idly casting a cleaning spell at the mess around the sink.

The Doctor gave him a scandalised look. "Of course not! I'm not some American."

Harry snorted. "Doctor, you're not even human." He stepped forward and waved the tea boxes back into the cupboards, rolling his eyes when the Doctor tried one of his new cups and promptly spat it out in the general direction of the sink. "Here," Harry said, pulling down a box he'd never bothered opening. He magically filled the pot with water and heated it, then poured some into the cup the Doctor had just washed out. He dropped in a tea bag, then handed over the cup, smacking the Doctor's hand away from the milk. "No milk."

"But–"

"No. Milk," Harry ordered, waving the milk back into the fridge. "Drink that."

The Doctor pouted for a moment, then eyed the drink in his cup oddly. "It hasn't finished seeping," he reported.

Harry glanced into the cup. "Yes it has. Drink it."

"But it's not–"

"It's green tea."

"Oh." The Doctor took a sip, blinked, then downed the whole cup. Before Harry could do more than laugh at the expression on his face, the Doctor was reaching for the pot again to pour himself another cup. "This is good!" he reported while waiting a minute for the tea to seep.

Harry waved the box at him. "It's all yours, then. I don't much care for it."

The Doctor sipped at his tea for a moment, happily taking the box. "Why do you have it, then?" he inquired once he'd finished the cup again.

"Charlie went to a convention of a sort of dragon tamers in China. He brought everyone back some green tea as a gift. Hermione and Hugo both like it, but the rest of us just sort of tried one cup, then shoved the boxes in a cupboard." Harry shrugged, busying himself with cleaning up the mess of his kitchen by hand.

The Doctor nodded and held out the tea pot for Harry to fill it again. At Harry's disbelieving look, he smiled. "Please?"

"At least you know where the bathroom is," Harry muttered, tapping the pot to fill it with hot water.

The Doctor grinned at him and poured himself another cup, then set the pot back on the stove. "So, I had a small alien invasion I had to fix up, but then I came to see you. I sort of ruined the TARDIS when I regenerated, but she's all fixed up now. Do you want to see?" He bounced a bit on the balls of his feet.

"What, you came by just to see little old me?" Harry teased. "I'm touched. And of course I'd like to see her."

The Doctor grinned and led the way out of the kitchen and around the table to where the TARDIS was parked. He snapped his fingers to open the doors, making Harry roll his eyes. "Go on, then," he said when Harry didn't immediately walk in. "She missed you."

"And was she the only one?" Harry inquired with a touch of teasing in his voice. When the Doctor just smiled a bit crookedly, Harry chuckled and slipped past the false wood doors.

Harry stopped just inside the door to look around, amazed. The Doctor came up beside him and dropped a hand over his shoulders. "What do you think?"

"She's beautiful," Harry whispered, gently pulling away and hurrying up the stairs to the console. "Absolutely stunning," he said to the central pillar.

The TARDIS purred in response and Harry felt as though a cat had just rubbed all over him happily.

"She missed you," the Doctor said again, walking up behind Harry.

Harry turned to him, smiling. "And did you?" he asked.

"Always," the Doctor said and leaned forwards just the slightest bit.

Harry met him halfway without a moment's hesitation and they fumbled for a moment, trying to match their mouths together – they were both used to the Doctor being almost a head taller. But when they managed, they stayed locked together for what felt like an eternity before Harry had to pull back to breathe. Once he'd caught his breath, he grinned at the Doctor and commented, "I like you this way, you know. You're just my size."

"Are you saying I'm short?"

"No, you silly fool. I'm telling you you're perfect." Harry tugged on a lock of brown hair. "And, I never thought I'd say this, but you look good in a bowtie."

The Doctor grinned. "I do," he agreed, nodding. "I look smashing. And what do you think about the suspenders?"

"You're wearing...?" Harry pulled back the jacket so he could see the suspenders and laughed. "You're something else."

"But they look good, right?"

"They look brilliant," Harry promised and rested his head on the Doctor's shoulder. "Tell me about this saving the world you did."

"You want to hear about something boring like that?"

Harry shook his head, amused. "Your life is never boring."

"Sure it is. Save the world from this alien threat, scare off that alien threat. That's boring. What have you been up to?"

"Oh, saving Cardiff from this alien threat, bagging up that alien threat... Bit boring, really."

The Doctor chuckled. "Aliens are boring," he decided. "Oh! I think I need to use the loo." He slipped away from a laughing Harry and made a dash out of the console room and out of sight.

Harry shook his head and leaned back against the console. "I told him so," he told the TARDIS, "but he had to keep downing tea. He's a bit mad."

The TARDIS purred a bit.

Harry smiled. "Course we still love him. Hard not to love a lunatic."

The TARDIS made a chiming sound that translated in Harry's mind as laughter.

"Are you two talking about me?" the Doctor demanded, poking his head out a window along the hallway.

"Why would we do something like that?" Harry replied, pushing off to console and walking to meet the Doctor. "How about you give me the grand tour?"

"I don't quite know where everything's gotten to, yet," the Doctor warned.

Harry grinned. "No better time to figure it out, then, is there?"

The Doctor grinned back. "You have a point. What shall we find first?"

"I was thinking your bedroom would be a good place to start."

"I think we can manage that."

-0-

When Harry and the Doctor finally walked back out of the TARDIS, three hours had gone by. "Are you getting hungry?" the Doctor asked as he closed the TARDIS doors behind him. "Because I'm getting hungry."

Harry glanced at a clock and nodded. "Yeah, me too. You want to wait while I whip something together, or would you like to go out?"

"Are you asking me on a date?" the Doctor teased.

"Oh, I guess I am. I know this cute little café just down the block..."

"I know an even better café on the moon," the Doctor offered.

"The moon."

"About seven thousand years from now. Give or take a few days."

Harry shook his head, chuckling. "Alright then. Take me to the moon. Will I need to pack my space suit?"

"Do you actually have one?" the Doctor asked, opening the TARDIS up again and motioning Harry in.

"Not yet. Will you buy me one?"

The Doctor laughed. "I'll buy you anything you want. But, really. What are you going to do with a space suit?"

"Put it on display for my kids, of course."

"How are the little buggers, anyway?"

Harry groaned and leaned back against the railing as the Doctor input their coordinates. "Bloody hell... James has made friends with a couple of bullies at his school and he keeps coming home with notes about how he's bullying other kids. It doesn't help that he's managed a reasonable handle on his magic, so he can get away with more."

The Doctor grimaced. "I take it yelling doesn't seem to help?"

Harry shook his head. "No. And neither does anything else Ginny and I have threatened. He's taken to shoving Albus around at home, though he's still as sweet as ever to Lily. If nothing else, he only seems to pick on other boys. The only good reports we get about his behaviour are that he stops the other boys from beating up the girls."

"Well, I'm afraid parenting is not really my thing," the Doctor said, then fell silent to land the TARDIS. "Have you considered just pulling him from the school?" he asked, stepping around the console and taking Harry's hand to lead him out into the space station.

Harry took a moment to grin at the surroundings before he let the Doctor continue leading the way to the café he'd mentioned. "We discussed it, yes. I don't really want him to lose the experience, though. And even if he stops going, the kids still live in the neighbourhood. I'm at a bit of a loss about what to do," he admitted.

The Doctor shook his head, leading them over to an open table and nodding to a waitress who called that she'd be right over. "I wish I could be more helpful."

Harry smiled at him. "Don't worry about it. I didn't really expect you to be able to solve it. It's nice to just talk to someone about it."

"What, you can't talk to Jack about it?" the Doctor teased, eyes glinting madly.

Harry snorted and shook his head, taking the offered menu with a quiet, "Thanks." They placed their drink orders and both opened the menu to look it over. "Jack would suggest getting James a girlfriend," he commented, considering the sandwich choices.

"Ah. Good point. What about the others you work with?"

"Gwen's the only one who's expecting kids any time soon, and Ianto's niece and nephew are pretty well-behaved. Martha gave Albus some tips on how to deal with bullies when I brought him to work with me, and Mickey happily told us all about how he used to get beat up as a kid and saved by Rose..." The Doctor laughed and Harry shot him a grin. "Nah... Not the most helpful bunch, that lot. And the school is pretty useless when it comes to things like this, too. Though they do seem to have gotten better about spotting bullying since I went there."

"I don't suppose you can use the same trick on James as you did on Dudley, can you?"

Harry snorted. "Introduce him to a dementor? Sure, I could do that. Ginny'd kill me, though."

The Doctor nodded. "Let's aim for staying alive then, hm?"

Harry chuckled.

They discussed the various aliens they saw while they ate, trading stories with their dealing with the species. While the Doctor's adventures far outstripped Harry's own, Harry had encountered far more aliens and their technology while working for Torchwood, so actually had something to add that the Doctor wasn't there for.

After they'd paid, the Doctor led the way over to an ice cream shop and bought them both a cone. They then found a wall to lean against to people watch.

"Hey, Doctor?"

"Hm?"

"Do you have any idea how someone could completely forget a major event in history?"

The Doctor looked over at Harry curiously. "No. Shouldn't be possible. Not unless they've got Alzheimer's or something. Why?"

Harry glanced down at his ice cream. "Just wondering a bit."

The Doctor considered him for a long moment, then sighed. "It's possible to change an event a bit, like Rose did with her dad – she told you about that, I'm sure?" Harry nodded. "People who haven't travelled in time will remember the changed event and not how it was originally, if that happens. But you can't just completely forget an event. Not possible."

Harry managed a smile. "Brilliant. Mickey owes me three pounds."

The Doctor chuckled. "Glad to help. Now, I've a question for you?"

"Go on, then."

"Do you want to travel with me again?"

Harry glanced at the Doctor for a moment, then looked off towards the Earth that could be seen floating above them through the glass ceiling of the station. Did he want to travel for a while? He'd just been on one hellish trip thanks to the Rift. And while travelling with the Doctor was a little safer...

"Not right now," Harry found himself saying. "Maybe in a couple of weeks. Months, even. But not right now."

The Doctor nodded, firmly looking away from Harry as if it would keep the response from hurting. "Okay." He pasted a smile on his face and looked back at Harry. "I'll just have to drop by again in a couple weeks."

Harry smiled back. "Sounds good."

"Well, I should probably get you back to your flat, then," the Doctor decided, pushing off from the wall.

Harry grabbed his arm before the Time Lord could take more than a step or two. "Don't take it the wrong way?" he whispered.

The Doctor shot him a crooked smile and took Harry's hand in his. "I know. Sometimes..." He swallowed and shook his head. "Sometimes I forget you have a life to go back to."

Harry smiled and stepped forward to kiss him. "Just as long as you don't go forgetting that you're a part of that life. Right?"

"Right." The Doctor managed a full-fledged grin then and squeezed the hand in his. "Let's get you home. And I'll just have to drop by again in a few weeks and cart you off somewhere. Somewhere exciting."

Harry laughed. "With you, Doctor, everything is exciting."

"I'll take that as a compliment."

-0-

True to his word, the Doctor left Harry alone for a couple of months. Between himself and Ginny – as well as school ending for the summer – they were able to get James to stop being such a bully. It helped that one of James' 'friends' decided Lily was fair game one afternoon while Ginny was distracted with another mother at the park. James had been too far away to protect his baby sister, but Albus hadn't been. In an impressive show of accidental magic, Albus had sent the bully slamming into the side of the slide. James had mellowed quite a bit around his brother after that display, and since he was no longer talking to the boy who'd tried to pick on Lily, the group had less of an influence on him.

May boiled into June and June was heading towards July before the Doctor reappeared in Harry's life. In fact, Harry was just heading for bed on Friday night, looking forward to seeing his kids the next morning when the grating sound of the TARDIS made him spin around and run for the door out into the living room. He stood there and watched as the blue box slowly materialised, wondering how much time had passed for his friend since they'd last spoken.

It wasn't the Doctor who walked out the doors, however, but a young woman sporting hair almost the same shade as Harry's family's. "Where are we, then, Doctor?" she called back over her shoulder.

"Someone's flat?" another voice, not the Doctor's, offered and a young man poked his head out around the woman.

"Just here to pick someone up!" the Doctor called and slipped past the two humans in the doorway. He grinned when he spotted Harry leaning against his bedroom doorway. "Harry! Has it been long enough? Can I steal you away for a night?"

"Just one night?" Harry repeated, ignoring the two in the TARDIS doorway who were staring at him. "Going to be a short trip then, what with the night already half gone."

"But, it's a time machine..." the young woman explained.

The Doctor nodded. "Harry knows that. Don't you, Harry?"

"And here I thought it was just a box that's bigger on the inside," Harry replied, smirking a bit. "Introductions, Doctor. I know you're getting up there in years and all..."

The Doctor rolled his eyes at Harry, but turned and obliged, "Amy, Rory, this is my very good friend, Harry. Harry, Amy Pond and Rory Williams. They're going to be married in the morning."

Harry snorted. "Once per incarnation? You're making a habit of this, Doctor."

"Shush, you."

Harry grinned. "Third time's a charm."

"I said shush."

"Wait. Doctor, you said this was supposed to be a sort of a date," Amy cut in. "So..."

"Why am I inviting Harry along?" the Doctor finished for her. "So I have someone to talk to while you two go have fun, of course!"

"And by 'someone to talk to', he means 'someone to cause trouble with'," Harry supplied. "Where are you taking us, then?"

"You'll come?" the Doctor replied.

"Depends on where you're planning to drag me."

The Doctor's eyes danced. "The city of romance!"

"You're taking me to Paris," Harry said flatly.

"No, that's the city of doing the dirty in alleyways," the Doctor shot back, making the two humans in the door of the TARDIS squeak in surprise.

Harry grinned. "Alright, then. Let me get my trousers."

"There's plenty of clothing in the TARDIS!" the Doctor called after him as Harry slipped back into his bedroom.

Harry poked his head around the door. "With the way you drive, I'll end up with them on my head while trying to put them on my bottom. I'll change here, thanks."

"I'm not that bad!" the Doctor complained, then turned to Amy. "Am I?"

"You have your moments," Amy replied.

Harry laughed from the bedroom, having heard the comment.

As soon as Harry was dressed, they piled back into the TARDIS and zipped off to places unseen. When the Doctor commented that the place they were going might be cold, Harry wandered back into the TARDIS to find a jacket. He came back out with a familiar leather jacket which had the Doctor grinning a bit madly as they made for the door together.

"You sure you want to wear that jacket?" the Doctor asked after they'd gotten their identity checked by a gentleman in the streets of Venice. "I was quite pitiful when I wore it."

"I liked you when you wore this jacket," Harry replied. "Most of us did. Well... Except Mickey. He thought you were an arse."

"I _was_ an arse. I went around calling humans apes."

"Yes, well... We sort of _are_ glorified apes," Harry replied and the Doctor grinned at him.

"It's not something you say to people you like," the Doctor replied, leaning against a stone fence and watching the line of Calvierri girls be accosted by a gentleman looking for a specific girl. "Hmm..." the Doctor said, then turned and hurried off, Harry moving to follow him.

"What are you thinking?" Harry asked.

"I'm thinking there's something not quite right," the Doctor replied. "And we can check it out while Amy and Rory reconnect."

"The dates you take me on are never lacking in excitement, at least," Harry decided, shaking his head.

The Doctor grinned and hopped up on some steps behind the man they'd seen accost the line of girls. "Who are those girls?" he asked the man.

The man turned and looked at the Doctor suspiciously for a moment, gaze flickering to Harry, who stood at the bottom of the steps, only briefly. "I thought everyone knew about the Calvierri School," he said.

"Our first day here," the Doctor said by way of excuse, borrowing Harry's shoulder to steady himself as he hopped off the steps and walked closer to the gentleman. "So, parents do all sorts of things to get their children into good schools. They move house, they change religion." He paused and waited for another man to pass them by before asking, "So why are you trying to get her out?"

The man's eyes flickered with indecision for the briefest moment before he said, "Something happens in there. Something magical. Something evil. My own daughter didn't recognise me. And the girl who pushed me away... her face... like an animal..."

The Doctor glanced at Harry who nodded at the question in the sharp brown eyes. He turned back to the man with a grim smile. "I think it's time we met this... Signora Calvierri..."

"But how?" the man asked as the Doctor led him back towards the building the girls had come from.

"Can you distract the guards?" Harry said by way of explanation, envisioning the entrance to the building. "There was a side gate they weren't guarding that we should be able to sidle past."

"You're going to sneak in?" the man hissed, horrified.

"Oh, yes," the Doctor agreed, looking a bit excited. "Sounds like fun, doesn't it?"

"But–"

"Can you distract the guards?" Harry asked again.

"Well, yes, but–"

"You worry about the guards," the Doctor offered. "Harry and I can take care of ourselves just fine." He grinned over at Harry who just rolled his eyes in amusement.

-0-

They snuck in together, then split up, the Doctor going down a flight of stairs while Harry crept through the main floor. It didn't take Harry long to get lost, however, and eventually trapped as the line of girls came back from their walk. With the group congregated in the circular bedroom, Harry sighed and found himself a place out of the way. He probably could have managed to sneak past them and back out of the house, but he wasn't really sure he wanted to chance it. Anyway, he might learn something if he stayed. He just hoped the Doctor was faring much better than him.

Harry was still sitting in the room, avoiding the creepy girls to the best of his ability, when a young woman he recognised was admitted. When all but Amy and one other girl filed out, Harry hopped down from his perch on the window sill. "Amy?" he hissed.

Amy jumped and stared around. "Harry?" she hissed back.

Harry glanced at the other girl in the room, who was turning to stare at Amy, surprise creeping slowly over her face. "Yeah. What are you doing here?"

"Where _are_ you?" Amy demanded.

Harry rubbed at his face, eyed the other girl in the room, then pulled off his cloak, grinning when both girls jumped in surprise. "Right here, of course."

"I thought you were _human_ ," Amy complained.

"I _am_ , you silly girl." He rolled his eyes. "Merlin. Why are you here?"

Amy glanced back at the girl on the bed and asked, "Isabella?"

The girl nodded. "Yes. Who..."

"I'm Amy, and I came to get you out of here." She glanced back at Harry, who was frowning at her. "And him too, I suppose. Why _are_ you still in here, anyway?"

"I got trapped when they all came back in here. Now, tell me. Why. Are. You. Here?" Harry tapped his foot impatiently to add emphasis to his demand.

Amy sighed. "The Doctor's friend, Guido, your father," she said to Isabella, "said there's an underground passage into here, but it's locked from this side. We need someone to open it so we could rescue Isabella."

"And, let me guess, you volunteered yourself?"

"I did. What of it?"

Harry shook his head. "Never mind. So, where's the tunnel entrance?"

"I was going to go hunt for it," Amy replied.

Harry blinked. "Yeah? Okay, then. _I_ will go search for it, you act like you belong here and stay out of trouble."

"The _hell_ I will!"

Harry frowned at her. "And what if they catch you wandering about, then? You think they'll just slap the back of your hand and send you to bed without supper?"

"You don't even know what we're dealing with here!"

"Neither do you!"

"Of course I do! They're vampires." Amy smiled a bit smugly.

Harry rolled his eyes, unimpressed. "No they're not. I've met vampires in my time, and these aren't it."

"You've met– Get off the grass."

"You could both go," Isabella suggested before they continued to argue about what they were facing. "But it had best be quickly, before the steward comes back."

"She's got a point," Harry allowed. "Amy, why don't you change? Isabella, is it alright if I attach a bit of magic to you so we can find you later?"

"Magic?" Amy hissed, looking suspiciously over her shoulder, partially to make sure Harry wasn't watching her change.

"Magic?" Isabella echoed, fear in her voice.

Harry nodded, deciding to ignore Amy for the moment. "It's nothing bad, just a little spell to help us find you again. You won't even notice it. May I?"

Isabella chewed on her lip for a moment, then nodded. "It won't hurt?"

"You have my word," Harry promised, then cast a tracking charm on her. The girl glowed for a moment, but by the time she'd brought her hand up to study it closer, she was back to normal.

Amy's hand closed over Harry's arm and she smiled at Isabella. "We'll be off, now. Wait for us, okay?"

Isabella nodded. "Be safe."

"You as well," Harry replied, letting Amy drag him out of the room. Once they were out of sight, he pulled his cloak back over his head. "You lead," he decided, if only because Amy couldn't see him.

Amy nodded and led the way past a few of the other girls, eyeing them warily. Once they'd got far enough away from the other occupants of the house, she said, "I thought magic didn't exist."

Harry sighed. "The Doctor didn't properly introduce me earlier. I think he enjoys watching his companions be confused by me. My name is Harry Potter."

Amy stopped and turned to stare at where his voice was coming from. "Harry Potter?" she repeated. " _The_ Harry Potter? The wizard from the books?"

Harry grinned. "Yes. I attended Hogwarts and fought Voldemort and married Ginny Weasley and had three children. All of that."

"Then how did it end up in a book? I thought it was against your people's rules to let muggles know about you?"

Harry chuckled and gently tugged on her arm, silently suggesting they keep moving. "That was the Doctor's fault. He knew all about the series – time traveller and all that – and he talked me in to going back in time and putting the idea about my story into the mind of a struggling writer. So I did." He shook his head, remembering that Doctor and his insistence that Harry give his story to the muggle woman. "It tends to make explaining who I am to the Doctor's companions a bit easier, if nothing else."

"So, wait. How long have you known the Doctor?"

"Mmm... Thirteen years, off and on. We first met just after the war. He was a different man, then. Not as insane as he is now."

"It's hard to imagine him being anything but like he is now," Amy commented.

Harry smiled a little sadly. "It's hard to see him after he changes, if you ask me."

"Why? Wasn't it a gradual thing? Or did you not see him for a while between?"

Harry shook his head. "The thing you have to realise about the Doctor, Miss Pond, is that when I say he changed, I don't mean his personality changed as he got older, I mean _everything_ changed. When I first met him, he looked to be in his mid-forties, had a military haircut and big ears and hated everything he saw, practically. He went around calling humans 'stupid apes' and generally being grumpy about life. A few years back, he... Oh, I guess you could say that version of him died, and the Doctor became a bit crazier and had a full head of hair and liked to wear a trench coat. And now he's even crazier, if you can believe that, and has more hair and is shorter than he used to be."

"And he wears a bowtie."

"I like that bowtie."

Amy laughed. "He really is an alien, isn't he?"

Harry chuckled. "You have no idea, my dear."

Amy sighed and set her lamp on what appeared to be a raised storm drain. "This seems to be it," she commented and pulled the bolt free.

"Behind you!" Harry hissed as Amy picked up her lamp.

Amy turned to look and hurriedly backed up as the steward approached her. "Come now, young lady," he said, eyes hard even as he smiled at her. "Signora Calvierri wishes to see you."

Amy let out a surprised shout as she backed up into Harry, who was still under his cloak. His wand slipped from his fingers when she jarred him, and since she'd dropped the light when she startled herself, he couldn't begin to guess where the stick was. "Harry?" Amy whispered, still trying to back away from the steward.

"I dropped my wand!" Harry hissed, holding on to her arm and backing up with her while he looked about hopefully.

Amy swallowed and stopped moving. "Wait here for the Doctor," she whispered, tugging her arm free.

"Amy, no!" Harry hissed back, grabbing again for her arm, but she moved too quickly and all he touched was air.

He waited angrily as the steward led Amy back into the house, then pulled out his laser pen and switched on the torch to look around for his wand. He found it in a crack between the stones and grabbed it, muttering to himself about stupid girls with death wishes.

He didn't need to wait much longer for Rory and the Doctor to start climbing out of the hole. As soon as the Doctor's head appeared over the top of the grating, Harry jumped forward and grabbed the hand to help him out.

"I was wondering where you'd gotten to," the Doctor commented as he finally pulled himself out.

"I got trapped in the bedroom the girls share," Harry replied as they both leaned over to help Rory out.

"Oh, so you got to watch all the girls – including Amy – dress and you got to kiss Amy," Rory muttered as he pulled himself up and out of the hole.

Harry gave the Doctor an unimpressed look. "You kissed her."

"She started it!"

"Did you kiss her back?"

"No, no. I already tried that," Rory offered.

"No, I didn't return the kiss," the Doctor hissed. "And where is she, anyway?"

"She got taken by the steward," Harry allowed, eyeing the Doctor suspiciously. "We should probably go and find her, as well as Isabella. Isabella I can find easily. Amy, not so much. Is there a single companion you haven't kissed?"

"I didn't– Yes! I haven't kissed Rory. Or Mickey."

"Any _female_ companion you haven't kissed?"

"Plenty," the Doctor replied. "Can we go find Amy?"

" _Before_ the vampires drink her dry?" Rory added.

"They're not vampires," Harry said, rolling his eyes.

"What are they, then?" Rory demanded.

"How should I know? But they're not vampires, I can tell you that."

"How can you tell?" the Doctor inquired, walking over to a chest where a bony hand was peeking out.

"Vampires can't be awake during the day. They just can't. As long as the sun is up, they sleep," Harry explained. "Oh, and their teeth are wrong."

"You say that like you've seen vampires before," Rory muttered.

"He probably has," the Doctor offered, checking over the corpse he found in the chest. "Oh, this is interesting."

The other two walked over. Rory jerked back at the sight of the corpse, but Harry knelt down next to the Doctor and pointed at the teeth. "Vampire teeth look a lot like our teeth do, except a bit sharper. This looks more like a..." He frowned and nodded his head from side to side. "Like a shark or something. But this is no vampire."

"So it's an alien," the Doctor assumed.

"Looks human, has teeth like a shark?" Harry grinned. "Alien."

"See, _this_ is why I like having you along!"

"You mean it's not for my winning personality?"

"Who are you?" a chorus of voices interrupted.

"How about finding Amy?" Harry suggested.

"Lead the way!" the Doctor called, waving his stick of ultraviolet light at the girls that had popped out of the stonework.

Harry grabbed Rory and dragged him away from the nearest girl, who hissed. "Don't stare, run!" he snapped, then turned and led the way up the stairs, retracing the path he'd taken with Amy and hoping she was along one of the corridors somewhere.

They ran into the Signora on the way and stopped, finding themselves between the woman and the girls. "Come for Amy Pond?" the Doctor tried, then jumped back to wave his stick at the girls coming up behind them.

"Not a very good rescue plan, is it?" Signora Calvierri commented, smiling rather smugly.

Amy and Isabella chose that moment to run up to them. "This way!" Isabella called and led them down a hallway.

"They're definitely aliens!" Amy reported from where she ran with Isabella, Rory hot on their tails.

"Brilliant!" the Doctor called back, using his sonic screwdriver to lock a door behind them.

"Is that new?" Harry asked, eyeing the object with interest.

"Yeah. Broke my old one." The Doctor grinned at him, then paused to wave his stick at the group pursuing them.

"You're always breaking that thing," Harry commented, then turned around and shot a ball of light behind them. "Anti-vampire spell. Never thought I'd use it on an alien," he said as he linked hands with the Doctor and hurried after the rest of the group. Behind them, the aliens cowered and hissed in the face of the magical sun.

"I'll kiss you later," the Doctor promised, grinning.

They caught up to the others at the doorway to the canal and hurried past Isabella, who was holding the door open for them. As soon as she turned to follow behind, she shrieked and cowered from the rising sun.

Harry pulled off the leather jacket he was wearing and tossed it to the Doctor, who was closer to the girl. The Doctor grinned and used the jacket to help shade Isabella from the sun, helping her down the stairs to where her father waited. "Get in the boat," he ordered everyone else as Guido helped Isabella.

By the time Harry's spell died out and the group of aliens got to the door, the boat was long gone.

-0-

The Doctor told Guido and Rory to take the girls back to Guido's house. When asked what he would be doing, the Doctor said, "I'd like to speak with Signora Calvierri. Harry's coming with me." He'd smiled at Harry then, and Harry just smiled back, shaking his head. It was the first he'd heard of such a plan, but he wasn't going to say no to a chance to spend more time with the Doctor.

So they found themselves in the receiving room of the Calvierri House. The Doctor took the chair while Harry leaned against the back of it, intending to stay just out of sight unless he was needed for a quick escape or something similar.

As soon as Signora Calvierri entered, the Doctor whistled and said, "Long way from Saturnyn, aren't you? Sister of the Water."

Calvierri glanced up at the Doctor, mildly surprised. "No, let me guess. The owner of the psychic paper." The Doctor shrugged, neither agreeing nor denying. "I take it you're a refugee, like me."

The Doctor shifted in the chair. "I'll make you a deal; an answer for an answer." When Calvierri nodded, he continued, "You're wearing a perception filter. It's doesn't change your features, but manipulates the brainwaves of the person looking at you. But seeing one of you for the first time in, say, a mirror, the brain doesn't know what to fill the gap with, so... leaves it blank. Heh. Hence, no reflection."

"Your question?" Calvierri asked.

"Why can we see your big teeth?"

Calvierri laughed. "Self-preservation overrides the mirage. The, sub-conscious perceives the threat and tries to alert the conscious brain. Now, my turn. Where are you from?"

The Doctor smiled a bit sadly. "Gallifrey."

Calvierri blinked. "You should be in a museum." The Doctor let out a faint snort. "Or in a mausoleum."

"Why are you here?" the Doctor asked, ignoring the comments on the rarity of his people.

"We ran from the silence," Calvierri admitted. "Why are you here?"

"Wedding present. The silence?"

Calvierri considered that for a moment, then said, "There were cracks. Some were tiny. Some were as big as the sky. Through some, we saw worlds with people, and through others, we saw silence... and the end of all things. We fled to an ocean like ours." She glanced up at the Doctor. "And the crack snapped shut behind us. Saturnyn was lost."

"So Earth is to become Saturnyn Mark Two," the Doctor figured out.

"And you can help me," Calvierri said, voice bordering on hopeful while the Doctor smiled without humour. "We can build a new society here as others have." She smiled. "What do you say?"

"Hmm." The Doctor knocked on the back of the chair. "What do we say?" he asked.

Harry stepped around the back of the chair, eyes sharp with anger. "You aliens are all alike, trying to take over Earth. Frankly, I'm sick of your lot."

Calvierri smiled, unconcerned. "We don't want the whole planet, just this city."

"And destroy millennia of history?" Harry replied, leaning on the edge of the chair, hand resting on the Doctor's shoulder. "This city has a place in history; you can't just take it away."

"And you intend to stop me? A human?"

" _We_ intend to stop you," the Doctor corrected, standing from the chair at last. "I'm as fond of this planet as Harry here is, and we'll protect it to every extent possible. But I can find you another planet. A planet where you can populate without killing off the original species."

Calvierri didn't stop smiling. "I don't think so, Time Lord. It's too late for us to move again, and I will bend the heavens to save my race. Carlo!"

"If only giving them a choice actually worked," Harry complained as he and the Doctor were herded out of the House of Calvierri.

"It does, sometimes," the Doctor offered.

"Where am I when this happens?"

The Doctor shot him a grin. "Playing blocks with the kids?"

"Har, har." Harry rolled his eyes. "But really, Doctor. When do they agree to a peaceful surrender?"

The Doctor sighed and stopped walking. "Usually on other planets," he admitted. "But... well..."

"Not on Earth," Harry said for him. "Humans like their wars too much to ever have a peaceful resolution to a hostile take-over. Even when you manage to keep Torchwood and U.N.I.T. uninvolved, human nature is just so violent."

"Most species who are looking to take over other planets are hostile, and, yes, things tend to get out of hand when you have two hostile species facing off against each other." The Doctor shook his head, as if it would ward off his gloomy thoughts. "Let's go check on Isabella and Amy. We need to make sure they're both okay."

Harry nodded and they hurried off.

-0-

Amy was perfectly okay, but Harry had to burn the alien cells out of Isabella's bloodstream to save her. When faced with the choice between horrible pain and becoming a creature like the other girls, Isabella chose the pain. As soon as she was clean, Harry handed over a blood replenishing potion as well as a pain relieving potion and pointed her towards the bed in the room while everyone else sat around the table.

When Harry finally joined them, the Doctor went through everything he knew and, with a little help from what Amy had been told while waiting for her rescue, was able to figure out something of what Calvierri was planning to do. Before they could figure out what to do with the knowledge, however, the Calvierri girls started breaking through the windows. When Isabella screamed in terror at the arms reaching above her, Harry stood with a muttered curse and cast an over-powered anti-vampire spell into a couple of the girls' faces.

"Do you have to go about killing them?" the Doctor complained as the girls he'd hit turned to ash.

Harry rolled his eyes. "I'm sorry if Jack is rubbing off on me," he retorted. "But I'm not about to let them kill us."

The Doctor groaned and darted forward to help Isabella away from the windows, leaving Harry to deal with the rest of the girls. "At least he doesn't have you carrying around a gun, yet."

"I don't use guns," Harry said, "it's in my contract."

Once the girls were all gone, the impossible storm clouds moved in.

"We've got to do something," Amy said, looking out the window in horror.

" _You_ two are getting married soon," Harry cut in, looking between Amy and Rory. "Why don't you leave this madness to the Doctor and me and get back to the TARDIS. You'll be safe there."

"And what does a wedding matter if there's no one to take us home?" Amy snapped in reply.

"Go back to the TARDIS," the Doctor ordered. "Harry's right. You'll be safe there, and the TARDIS will take you home if something happens to me."

"I'm not going to just let you sacrifice yourselves–"

"Go back to the TARDIS," the Doctor repeated, then turned to Harry. "Your family–"

Harry rolled his eyes. "Shut up, Doctor," he ordered, getting the smallest of smiles from the man. He turned to Guido and Isabella. "Find a boat and get out of Venice."

Guido shook his head while Rory dragged a quietly protesting Amy down the stairs to the front door. "We are Venetians. We were born here and, if it is our fate, we will die here."

Harry nodded. "Good luck," he offered, then allowed the Doctor to lead him out of the house and back to the Calvierri House.

Signora Calvierri met them there and left them after refusing to give them any assistance in stopping the storm. The Doctor led them out onto one of the towers and stared around for a moment before suddenly turning to Harry, eyes bright with knowledge. "Tear the throne apart. Just destroy it. I'm going after the secondary generator."

Harry nodded and, grabbing the Doctor's jacket lapels, pulled him forward for a kiss. "Don't you dare die on me again," he ordered.

The Doctor grinned. "Right back at you," he replied, then turned and ran for the stairs up. Harry hurried back down to the receiving room.

There, he almost ran into Amy and Rory. "What are you two– No! Never mind! Help me trash that chair."

"Can't you blast it with a spell?" Amy asked as they all attacked the wires that were poking out of the chair.

"Probably," Harry agreed, "but this makes me feel better. There's something about physically tearing something apart..."

The other two humans couldn't help but agree with that, so they finished shredding the chair by hand, then stepped back so Harry could completely blast it out of existence. Then they ran outside and looked up towards the tallest tower to where the Doctor was dealing with the second half of the alien device.

When he finally got switched it off and the storm clouds disappeared, everyone cheered. The Doctor turned around, grinned, then pointed at Harry, who waved at him, and jumped.

"Doctor!" Amy screamed, jerking away from Rory, who she was hugging.

But Harry just pulled out his wand and caught the Doctor in a spell, slowing his fall to a safe speed for him to hit the ground. "You're going to give someone a heart attack," Harry admonished him, putting his wand away.

The Doctor just shrugged. "I couldn't help myself. And I knew you'd catch me."

"Completely bonkers," Harry laughed.

Amy stalked up to the Doctor and smacked him on the arm. "Don't _do_ that!"

The Doctor grinned a bit. "I won't do it again if Harry's not here to catch me," he promised, then blinked and ran back into the building.

"What's he doing now?" Amy asked, looking back at where Rory and Harry stood.

"He's going to try and keep Signora Calvierri from killing herself," Harry said, looking past the woman to where the Doctor had disappeared.

"But, if she survives, she'd just try this again, right?" Amy asked.

Harry smiled a bit grimly. "Amy, the Doctor always tries to save everyone. Always. He can't help it. Even if someone holds a gun to his head, he'll try to save them in the end."

"He didn't for the Daleks," Amy replied, frowning. "Or the Weeping Angels."

Harry shrugged. "There are some creatures that can't be saved, if only because they refuse to be. Daleks and Weeping Angels..." He shrugged again. "Even the Doctor knows better than to try with them." He smiled. "Anyway. If you saw the Daleks, you know how much he hates them. Not that he hasn't been known to give them a second chance before, mind..."

"But he just can't let himself save them against their will," Amy realised.

Harry nodded and turned his attention back towards the gates of the Calvierri House.

-0-

The Doctor hadn't been able to save the last of the Saturnynians, and the pained look in his eyes as he walked back through the gates silenced any further comments from the three humans. "Let's go back to the TARDIS," he said and quickly turned his feet in the direction they needed to go.

Harry traded looks with the other two, then hurried to catch up to the Doctor, grabbing the Time Lord's hand in his and squeezing it wordlessly. The Doctor shot him the briefest of smiles, but didn't do or say anything further until the TARDIS came into sight. At that point, he pasted a smile onto his face and looked back at Amy and Rory, gleefully commenting on their soon-to-be wedding.

When Rory suggested that the Doctor should just take him back to where they'd come from, Amy turned to him and told him, "Stay. With us, please. Just for a bit. I want you to."

Rory turned to where the Doctor and Harry stood, watching the two with matching smiles. "Fine with me," the Doctor said.

"Yeah? Yes. I would like that," Rory agreed and shared a kiss with Amy.

Amy then turned to Harry. "And are you going to stay?" she asked him.

Harry considered that, glancing up at the Doctor. "I don't know," he admitted.

"Give us a moment," the Doctor requested. When Amy and Rory nodded, the Doctor gently led Harry down the street, away from the TARDIS. When they were out of hearing range, he turned to Harry and said, "What is it?"

Harry sighed. "Doctor, do you remember what I asked you when we were eating ice cream on the moon?"

The Doctor nodded, eyes darkening. "Yes. Amy is having the same problem. I take it you, Jack, Martha and Mickey can remember things that others can't?"

Harry nodded. "Yes. And what Signora Calvierri said about the cracks that led to silence..."

"The cracks are caused by some event that happens the day of Amy and Rory's wedding," the Doctor informed him, running a hand through his hair. "Something to do with tomorrow. And if you fall into a crack, you're erased from all of time and space. You never existed."

"And that's what happened to the day the Earth got stolen?"

"That, and a hundred other important events throughout time and space. When I first met Amy, she had one of those cracks in her bedroom wall. I closed it, but there's still hundreds of them, everywhere. I don't know what caused them."

Harry nodded. "Take me back to my time," he requested, firm in his resolve. When the Doctor opened his mouth to argue, Harry shook his head. "No, take me back. I know you, Doctor. You're going to take the long way. You're going to try and find a way to keep whatever happens from happening and, with our luck, that'll be just the thing to cause it. Take me back and I'll go to Amy and Rory's town and look around. Maybe I can stop it from happening just by being there. Maybe I can't. But I can't just sit around and travel while the universe ends."

"It's not going to end!"

"What else did she mean by 'the end of all things,' then? What is silence but the absence of noise?" Harry shook his head again. "Let me face this my own way. Please."

The Doctor closed his eyes. "You want me to leave you to face what you think is the end of the universe without me."

Harry sighed and leaned forward to rest his forehead against the Doctor's. "No. I want you to leave me to stop the end of the universe on my own terms. I don't intend to leave you, Doctor. Not as long as you don't leave me."

The Doctor smiled a bit grimly. "And what about when you reach the end of your life span? You remember what I told Rose."

Harry laughed. "I'll start looking for ways to make a Philosopher's Stone," he promised.

The Doctor laughed and shook his head. "Maybe I should just take you back in time so you can keep Dumbledore from destroying it in your first year, hm?"

Harry smiled. "That'll be the first thing we do after attending Amy and Rory's wedding. We'll leave them to go on their honeymoon while you and I go and steal a Philosopher's Stone."

"It's a promise," the Doctor agreed and stood up straight so their foreheads could no longer touch. He searched Harry's eyes for a long moment, then nodded. "I'll take you home."

Harry reached up and touched the Doctor's face. "Thank you."

"But if you die on me..."

Harry shook his head. "I'm not going to die on you."

"Good." And the Doctor leaned forward and pressed a bruising kiss against Harry's lips, which Harry was perfectly happy to return. After a long few minutes, he pulled away and whispered, "We should go back... before they come looking for us."

Harry laughed breathlessly. "Oh, fuck you. You can't just kiss me like that and then–"

The Doctor dropped another kiss onto Harry's mouth, then stepped away, eyes twinkling. "You can fuck me _after_ the wedding," he promised.

Harry laughed again and made a grab for the Doctor's hand. Once he had the hand in his grip, he nodded towards the TARDIS and they started back to the blue box. "Call me, if you find something out while you're taking the round-about way."

"Ah... I'll have to find the mobile..."

"Do I need to tell Martha that you lost the mobile she gave you?"

"No! It's... I'll find it! I will. Uhm... If I can't find it right away, I'll ring you on the TARDIS phone."

"I suppose that's acceptable. But look for that mobile. Or else."

The Doctor laughed.

-0-

Harry stopped in his flat long enough to restock his potions kit and grab some food for a stake-out. He didn't know how long he would be sitting around in Leadworth before some yet unknown event would occur that would crack the universe. Just as he was about to apparate out, his mobile rang and he popped it open. "Potter."

 _"Harry! How long has it been?"_ the Doctor said through the phone.

Harry rolled his eyes. "Uhm... About twenty minutes. Why?"

There was a brief pause on the Doctor's end, during which Harry thought he heard the Doctor talking indistinctly to someone. Finally, he returned to the phone, but he was whispering, _"Listen, I reached into a crack and pulled out what looks to be a piece of the TARDIS' door. I'm going to try and keep the TARDIS away from Leadworth for all of today."_

"Okay. And what if I happen to somehow see her around, then?"

 _"See what she's doing there?"_ the Doctor suggested, clearly not having a better idea. _"Run inside and smack me. Something like that."_

Harry snorted and rolled his eyes. "Yeah, okay. I'll see you tomorrow."

 _"Tomorrow,"_ the Doctor agreed and hung up.

Harry shoved his mobile back into the pocket of the leather jacket he had 'borrowed'. He pulled the jacket tighter around himself and apparated to the coordinates the Doctor had written down and slipped to him before the TARDIS had hurriedly left his flat.

And, what do you know? There, sitting in front of him was the TARDIS.

"Bloody hell," Harry complained and hurried forward to shove the doors open. However, instead of the Doctor standing by the console, Harry saw a woman he'd never seen before. "Who the bloody fu–"

" _Harry_?" the woman said, blinking in surprise.

Harry shook his head. "Who..."

_"River? River!"_

Both of them looked towards the phone, which the woman was holding loosely in one hand. "Yes. Sorry, Doctor," the woman said into the phone. "I was just..." She shook her head. "Listen, it's a trap. It's has to be. They used Amy to construct a scenario that you would believe."

"Every thing's a bloody trap!" Harry snapped, taking the short flight of stairs up to the console in two quick lunges. "What's going on here?"

_"River? Why is Harry there? Harry–"_

"I don't–" the woman started, but whatever she was going to say got cut off as the console sparked and the TARDIS jerked sideways.

"Shit," Harry hissed, rubbing at his back and lurching towards the console. "Look," he said to the woman, "I don't really care who you are or how you got here right now, but we _need_ to get the TARDIS out of here."

 _"Out of where?"_ the Doctor's voice demanded over the phone.

"Doctor, you remember our trip to Venice? When you left me behind to wait for that date you saw as the beginning of the cracks?" Harry asked into the phone the woman was still holding.

_"Yea– Crap! River, get the TARDIS out of there. Any time. Any place. I don't care. But get her out of there!"_

"I can't! The engines aren't heeding me!" the woman – River, the Doctor was calling her – shouted into the phone. She pointed to a lever just out of her reach. "Pull that," she ordered Harry.

Harry grabbed the lever and pulled, but it wouldn't budge. He looked up at the central column. "Come on, sweetheart..."

 _"You're driving her wrong!"_ the Doctor shouted through the phone.

"I'm driving her perfectly!" River grunted, fingering a couple of controls. "You're the one who taught me!"

_"Well, then... Shut her down! Shut off all her systems!"_

"I _can't_ ," River replied, flicking a switch angrily. She looked up at Harry, who was pulling out his wand to see if he could do anything by the way of shutting her down.

Before Harry could think of a spell to cast, a voice said, "Silence will fall. Silence will fall."

"The hell?" Harry whispered, looking over at the only other person in the TARDIS, but River looked just as confused and worried as Harry felt.

River looked back at the phone. "Someone else is flying her. An external force. I've lost control," she said.

 _"But why? How?"_ the Doctor asked over the phone.

"I don't know," River hissed back.

 _"Listen to me. Just land her. Emergency landing. Now,"_ the Doctor ordered.

River motioned to Harry. "Take the phone?" she requested.

Harry dashed around her and took the phone, sighing as the Doctor kept talked about the cracks. "He says to land. Wherever!"

"It's not safe!" River shouted back.

"It's us or the bloody universe!" Harry snapped. "Land her!"

River stared at him for a briefest of seconds, then nodded and dashed around the console, inputting the commands she needed.

As soon as he felt the TARDIS stop moving, Harry turned back to the phone and said, "We've landed. Now what?"

_"Get out of there. Leave the TARDIS and she'll automatically shut down."_

"Right." Harry waved at River. "Doors. Go!" he ordered, setting the phone down next to the cradle.

River ran for the doors and tugged at them, but they wouldn't open. "Harry!"

Harry snapped out his wand and shot a spell at the doors which would open them, but the only thing on the other side was solid rock. "...fuck..." Harry whispered.

"I'm sorry," River said, turning back to look at where Harry stood at the top of the stairs. "I'm so sorry."

Harry smiled back grimly and closed his eyes as the last explosion started at the console behind him.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, the Doctor said, "Sorry I'm late."

Harry's eyes snapped open and he, as well as River, stared at the Doctor, who was standing just off to the side of one of the open doors. "Where have you been?" River demanded as Harry jumped down from the console platform to join the other two.

"Here and there. Come on, then. We're on a schedule."

"Lunatic," Harry commented as he and River stepped forward and grabbed onto the wrist strap.

As soon as they landed, River breathed out in relief. "Amy. And the... plastic centurion."

"It's okay, he's on our side," the Doctor replied.

"Really? I dated a nestene duplicate once. Swappable head. It did keep things fresh."

"Bloody hell. You're like a female version of Jack, aren't you?" Harry muttered.

River shot him a smile which was rather reminiscent of Jack, then turned to everyone else. "Right then. I've got questions. But number one is this: What in the name of sanity have you got on your head?" She turned to look at the Doctor.

"You ask that like you think sanity has anything to do with it," Harry commented.

"It's a fez," the Doctor explained. "I wear a fez now. Fezzes are cool."

"Lunatic," Harry sang while Amy snatched the fez off the Doctor's head and tossed it for River to blast.

A Dalek floated up under the destroyed fez, sending them all scrambling for the exit. Once they were all down the ladder, the Doctor used his sonic screwdriver to seal the hatch.

"Doctor, come on," River ordered, gun still pointed at the hatch.

"Shh. It's moving away. Finding another way in. It needs to restore its power before it can attack again. Now, that means we've got exactly..." the Doctor trailed off to check his watch. "Four and a half minutes before it's at lethal capacity."

"How do you know?" Rory asked as the Doctor dashed past them and started down the stairs.

The Doctor paused and looked back up at them. "Because that's when it will shoot to kill me," he informed them, starting back down the stairs to a startled chorus of, "Kill you?" from both River and Harry.

"Nope, never mind!" the Doctor called back over his shoulder. He then proceeded to distracted them all by discussing how he could use the Pandorica to rebuild – or 're-boot', as he put it – the universe.

River, being the quickest to understand his techno babble, immediately started debating the finer points, all of which he smiled off and explained that, really, it wasn't so impossible. Before he could properly explain everything, though, the Dalek appeared down the hall and shot him.

"I _hate_ Daleks!" Harry snapped, then shot off a Killing Curse towards the creature.

Amy and Rory were left staring at Harry in shock, but River wore the air of one who'd seen Harry use that curse before. At any rate, she was far more worried about the Doctor.

The very same Doctor who used his vortex manipulator to shift himself twelve minutes into the past, according to a nervous Amy. The same Amy who also assured them that the Doctor had died when he'd shown up.

River demanded they lead the way towards where the Doctor had appeared. Amy and Rory turned to do as demanded, leaving River and Harry to bring up the rear.

"You don't think that killed him," Harry commented.

"I've seen him shot by a Dalek before. He doesn't just croak."

"And, even if he had, he'd have regenerated," Harry agreed.

"They're gullible," River said, shaking her head.

Harry's lips twitched. "He's only had them for a month or so. Cut them some slack."

River eyed him. "How long did it take you to figure him out?"

"Ah, but I originally met him two incarnations ago. Different man, different rules."

River smirked.

When they reached the spot where they'd left the Doctor twelve minutes ago, they found Rory's jacket, but no Doctor.

"But he was dead," Amy insisted, standing over the lone jacket.

"Who told you that?" River asked as she and Harry started down the stairs to join the younger two companions.

"He did!"

"Rule one: The Doctor lies," River said and walked right past them to the hall where the Pandorica sat. Inside, the Doctor had already hooked himself up to the box so he could take it with him into the exploding TARDIS.

River spoke with him first, helping make sure he was properly hooked up and everything was ready to go. Then she waved Harry over and he leaned against the side of the box, frowning. "You promised me," he said.

"I'm sorry," the Doctor whispered, closing his eyes.

"Me too," Harry whispered back, then turned and motioned to Amy. "Go on, then," he told her, then took up a spot next to River against the wall. "Back to life without the Doctor, then," he said to her. "Except, this time, he'll never have existed at all."

River glanced at him. "Someone once told me that those who have travelled in time see the universe in a different way from normal people."

Harry blinked and considered her. "I've heard that before, somewhere."

River shot him a crooked smile. "I heard it from you," she admitted, then turned back towards the Pandorica to warn the Doctor that it was time to go, leaving Harry staring at her in surprise.

As soon as the Pandorica closed, they hurried out of the way, River grabbing Amy as the girl continued to stand there. Shortly after the Pandorica cleared the roof, River's computer beeped and she pulled it out to look.

"It's from the Doctor."

"What does it say?"

"Geronimo."

-0-

Harry woke to glaring sunlight and a pounding headache. "Bloody hell. What did I have to drink last night?" he muttered.

"One hell of a drink," a voice offered from behind him.

Harry glanced around the trellis he was leaning against and blinked at the woman who was looking back at him through eyes narrowed in pain. "Who..." He shook his head. "You're... River?"

River grimaced and managed the faintest of nods. "Cheers. I don't suppose you've got anything on your belt for the pain?"

"Potions," Harry agreed and shuffled through his belt. It took him a moment to sort out the line of potions, what with the sun glaring off the glass bottles, but he did finally manage it and passed a pain potion over to the woman before downing his own serving. "Ugh. I feel like I've been trampled by a hippogriff."

"More like interstellar class star ship," River corrected, handing the empty bottle back over.

"When have you been hit by one of those?"

"When have _you_ been trampled by a hippogriff?"

"I see your point." Harry groaned and pulled himself to his feet, then looked around. "Where in Merlin's name are we? And how did we get here?"

"Leadworth, I think," River offered, holding up a hand so Harry could help her up, which he did. "What's the last thing you remember?"

Harry blinked and considered that, then shrugged. "Killing a bloody Dalek in a museum."

"The Doctor was going to use the Pandorica to fix the universe," River muttered, rubbing at her temples.

"By flying it into the exploding TARDIS," Harry recalled, then glanced over at River. "We _remembered_."

"We've both been travelling in time for years. We've practically got the vortex in our blood."

"Ugh. Just..."

River snorted.

Harry shook his head. "Time vortex in my blood or not, I still feel like there's nothing more than cotton between my ears."

"We're trying to remember stuff that never happened," River suggested. "It's going to be a bit fuzzy."

Harry sighed and leaned back against the trellis they were still standing next to. "River, can you answer a question for me?"

"Ask away, but I can't promise to answer."

Harry's lips twitched knowingly. "We've met before. Or, really, you've met _me_ before." He glanced over at her.

River nodded. "I met the Doctor years ago, in my past."

"Your past, our future," Harry replied.

River nodded again. "You're important to him, always have been, always will be." She smiled a bit crookedly. "I met you a long time ago."

Harry smiled. "Are we friends, then? Or rivals?"

River snorted. "The Doctor is a wonderful man, and he naturally draws people to him."

Harry cocked an eyebrow at her when she didn't continue. "You didn't answer my question, River."

River smirked at him. "Spoilers."

Harry laughed and shook his head. "Oh, I think we'll get on swimmingly," he decided. "Have you ever met Jack?"

"Not yet, but you've mentioned him before."

Harry smiled. "We'll have to rectify that. However, first! I think we have a wedding to attend."

"What about your family?"

Harry pulled out his phone and checked the time. "I'm already two hours late. I was busy saving the universe; Ginny will understand."

"Not if she doesn't remember the Doctor, she won't."

"Good thing my shield spells are so good then, hm?"

River chuckled, then glanced down at her battle gear, as well as at Harry's jeans and t-shirt. "We need better clothing, first."

Harry grimaced down at his clothing. "I don't have anything to wear to a wedding," he admitted.

"We'll have to go shopping, then."

"I hate shopping with women."

"Be careful, Potter. This woman has a gun."

Harry snorted, unimpressed, and took her arm to apparate them to a fancy clothing store.

-0-

They got back in time to slip into the church and watch the vows be exchanged. "I'm always late for weddings," Harry muttered.

"I'm sure your timing will improve," River offered.

Harry grinned at her. "Spoilers."

River grinned back, then pulled a book out of her pocket. "I'm going to give this to Rory."

"Why?"

She flipped the book open to show nothing but blank pages. "The Doctor once told me that when I attend a wedding and my journal is blank, I should give it to the groom. Say it's a lend."

Harry blinked and took the book and flipped through it again. "Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue..."

"What now?"

Harry smiled and handed the book back. "The Doctor borrowed the TARDIS from his people ages ago, but he never gave it back, and he destroyed it in his last regeneration, so she was just rebuilt."

"And she's blue," River realised, then shook her head. "Sometimes I forget how clever he is."

Harry leaned back as much as he could in the pew. "He's a tricky bastard," he agreed, "and just a little bit mad."

River did, indeed, leave it with Rory, smiling at his confusion about not knowing her. She met Harry back at the door of the community centre and they walked around the building, intending to go back to Amy's home, where the Doctor was certain to park his TARDIS eventually.

Shortly after they reached the lonely swing in the yard, the TARDIS' engines sounded. Harry considered his next action for a long moment and, when the doors opened and the Doctor stepped out, Harry punched him in the arm. Hard.

"Ow! What was that for?" the Doctor demanded, rubbing the abused arm.

" _That_ was for being a self-sacrificing lunatic. _Again_ ," Harry snapped. "Next time you do that, I reserve the right to hex you. Understood?"

The Doctor winced. "Yes, Harry."

River chuckled. "You two never really change, do you?"

"River! Still hanging about, I see." The Doctor grinned at her.

"Well, the groom _does_ have my book. And _you_ still have my vortex manipulator."

The Doctor glanced down at his wrist. "Ah. So I do." He pulled it off and handed it back to her. "And am I expected to get your book back, as well?"

River glanced at Harry, a smirk curling her lips. "Let's say it's a part of your punishment."

Harry laughed.

The Doctor looked between the two a little nervously. "What have you two been talking about while I was gone?"

Harry and River just smiled.

The Doctor sighed. "No, never mind. I don't want to know. Well! I've got a book to obtain and I wanted to dance a bit. Are you two coming?"

Harry took the vortex manipulator from River with a smile. "Perhaps in a little while. I missed my time with my kids today, and I intend to make it up."

"And what about River?" the Doctor asked a bit suspiciously.

"There's someone I wanted her to meet."

The Doctor sighed and looked down at his watch. "Two hours," he warned.

"We'll be back by then," River agreed, setting a hand on Harry's arm.

Harry waved, then apparated them to the back door of Torchwood Three's base. "Come on in," he said, using his key to unlock the door.

It only took a few moments for Jack to appear, peering over the railing of the third floor. "I was wondering if you were ever going to show," he called down. "Fancy dress?"

"Went to a wedding," Harry called back. "I brought someone back with me that I thought you might enjoy talking to."

Jack frowned. "Harry, we _do_ have rules about who we let know about the Hub. You remember those rules, right?"

Harry snorted. "I'm pretty sure Doctor's companions was on the 'Okay to Invite In' side."

Jack paused for a moment, then hurried around the railing. Moments later, the lift hit the ground floor and the immortal man hopped off. "Doctor's companion? You've seen him lately, then?"

"Fairly recently," Harry agreed, then stepped back to let River and Jack see each other properly. "Jack, this is Dr River Song. River, Captain Jack Harkness. Both of you were – or will be – companions to the Doctor, and you're both originally from the fifty-first century."

"Seriously?" Jack asked, holding out a hand to shake.

"Of course." River replied. "And what's your story, then?"

Harry snorted and shook his head. "River, I'll be back in two hours. Jack, if you even _joke_ about cheating on Ianto, I won't be held responsible. Ta!" Then he hit the button on the vortex manipulator, which he'd pre-set to the time he usually visited his family.

-0-

When Harry and River made it back to Amy's house two hours later, the Doctor was waiting for them, River's book in hand.

"Did you kids have fun?" the Doctor asked teasingly.

"It was fantastic," Harry replied with an overly-bright smile. "I got to see my kids, avoided a chewing out by Ginny and then we saw Jack and had an orgy."

The Doctor blinked. "You wouldn't have an orgy with Jack."

"Hm. I was hoping for a better reaction," Harry replied.

"Harry James Potter, are you trying to make me jealous?" the Doctor asked, amusement warring with pleasure in his eyes.

Harry smiled. "Is it working?"

The Doctor considered that. "If I say no, what will you do?"

"Try someone else."

The Doctor nodded and held River's book out to her. "Excuse us, River. Lovely seeing you again."

River took the book and laughed as the two men practically fell into the TARDIS, the doors clicking shut behind them.

"I thought you and the Doctor were married..." Amy said from under the archway a few feet in front of the TARDIS.

River smiled at her. "Harry won't be around forever, you know," she replied, shoving her book in the pouch on her hip. "I'd give them a couple of hours if I were you," she added, then used the vortex manipulator to shift back to her own time.

"We could go back and dance some more," Rory suggested.

Amy gave him a dry look.

Rory smiled nervously. "You're right. No more dancing."

Amy nodded and grabbed his arm. "Come on," she said, dragging him towards the house behind them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That was fun. Everyone gets it on in the end. *insert mad cackle here*
> 
> I know a few people didn't much like River, and I'm a bit off and on about her myself, but if I discount her supposed relationship with the Doctor, I find her bearable. I hope those of you that really don't like her didn't mind her so much in this fic.  
> I also have to admit that I've always been a bit iffy about Amy, especially after she randomly decided to go and kiss the Doctor. S'why she might've come off as a bit irritating. Didn't mean to offend anyone who actually liked her. ^.^"
> 
> This fandom needs art. Somebody should make some. (I am, by no means, an artist. Or this issue would no longer be an issue. XD)


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At the end of the last chapter, I got a lot of whimpers and tears over River's parting line. Sorry if that made people upset? But that was me trying to keep this fic cannon. Especially since we don't know what's going to happen with River and the Doctor. (Though it seems we'll be finding out soon enough. XD)
> 
> So, there's a bit in this chapter which I... yoinked... from The Sarah Jane Adventures, which is another shoot-off series, like Torchwood. I've made mentions to the series before, but nothing concrete. But there was an episode set this season that took place when Harry would have been on the TARDIS, so I sort of had to add it. This episode is titled _'Death of the Doctor'_.  
>  **For those who don't watch this show, Sarah Jane Smith travelled with the third and forth Doctors and reappeared in the New Who episode _'School Reunion'_ before getting her own show, where she, her adopted son, Luke, and some neighbourhood kids, Clyde and Rani, attempt to use the Doctor's more peaceful measures to deal with alien threats.  
>  This particular episode also stars Jo Grant – now Jo Jones – who travelled with the third Doctor before Sarah Jane.**  
> In the canon of this fic, Harry helped Sarah Jane at one point shortly after he joined Torchwood and ended up almost getting Clyde killed, so Sarah Jane isn't really happy with him, and Rani and Clyde aren't quite sure how they feel – on one hand, he's _Harry Potter_ ; on the other, he's a bit reckless and Sarah Jane's ticked.
> 
> Hope that helps!

Harry grunted and tried to cover his head with a pillow. The TARDIS had been trying to wake him for almost ten minutes, now, but he was _tired_. He knew Amy and Rory weren't about – the Doctor had left them on some planet that had just gotten married to an asteroid for their honeymoon – and the Doctor was probably outside, causing his usual amount of mayhem on some poor, unsuspecting planet; Harry recalled his lover mentioning something about a battlefield when Harry started off to bed, but he couldn't remember for certain.

The TARDIS let out another loud, obnoxious sound and Harry sat up, glaring at the nearest wall. "Dammit, woman! I'm trying to sleep!"

Harry got the distinct feeling that the TARDIS had just shot him a rude gesture.

He huffed and climbed out of the bed he and the Doctor shared. "I'm up," he told her, summoning his trousers. "Is this emergency requiring of a shirt, or am I fine without?"

He got the sense that the ship could care less one way or the other. Clothing was not a concept she fully understood, as she didn't need to cover anything up.

"Don't _need_ to," Harry retorted, summoning a shirt on his way out of the room, "but it's polite to wear one if you're in questionable company. Like if there are other sentient beings around."

Harry just _knew_ the ship would be rolling her eyes at him if she had any.

Harry tugged his shirt on over his head and stopped next to the screen of the TARDIS. "You gonna show me what he's done this time?"

The TARDIS sent him a sense of urgency.

Harry sighed and wandered over to the doors. He tugged them open and found himself facing the backs of three large vulture-like aliens and one human in a UNIT uniform. Also in attendance was Sarah Jane Smith and another woman he didn't know, both of whom were strapped down. "A battlefield's about right," he muttered.

The three aliens and the UNIT woman all turned to look at him, shocked. "Who is this?"

"Harry!" Sarah Jane called. "Thank god!"

Harry cocked an eyebrow at the lot. "What's going on here, then?"

"Who are you?" the UNIT woman snapped, hand reaching down to the gun on her hip.

"Destroy the control panel," Sarah Jane said hurriedly. "They're trying to use it to create a TARDIS key from our memories."

"Never good, that," Harry replied, then pulled his wand out and pointed it between the aliens and human in front of him. " _Reducto_."

The console exploded into sparks, which was echoed by the contraptions holding the two women, freeing them.

Harry shot out a couple more spells to imprison the three aliens and the UNIT woman, then walked past them to where Sarah Jane and the other woman were trying to get the doors to the room opened. "Here, move," he said and zapped it with his sonic screwdriver.

Three kids and the Doctor tumbled in, all looking a bit surprised.

"How did you–?" the Doctor started.

"You might remember how I'd decided to have a bit of a lie down?" Harry replied drily, giving the Doctor an unimpressed look. "The TARDIS woke me."

"Oh, I never thought I'd say it again, but I'm so glad to see you," Sarah Jane said, extracting herself from Clyde and Rani.

Harry gave her a grimace of a smile and shared a hug. "Good to see you again as well, Sarah Jane." He glanced past her to where Clyde and Rani were watching with nervous expressions. "All right, Clyde? Rani?"

"Yeah," they both agreed, and, after a glance at Sarah Jane's smile, both broke out into grins and stepped forward to hug him or shake his hand.

"Where's Luke?" Harry asked, glancing between the three.

"Off to uni a year early," Clyde replied with the faintest hint of sadness disguised as annoyance.

"Good on him," Harry said, gripping Clyde's arm, since he was still in reach, but looking at Sarah Jane.

Someone cleared their throat and they all looked over at the other woman who'd been strapped to the machine. The third kid was standing just behind her, looking a bit awkward. She stuck her hand out towards Harry and said, "Jo Jones. And this is my grandson, Santiago."

Harry smiled, bemused, and took the offered hand. "Harry Potter. Pleasure to meet you both."

There was a moment of stunned surprise, then Jo and Santiago were both demanding if he was _the_ Harry Potter while the others all laughed at the reaction that Harry always got.

Harry just grinned and said, "The one from the books, yeah. Went to Hogwarts, defeated Voldemort... All that."

Once they quieted down a bit, the Doctor commented, "Harry, you'll know Jo as Jo _Grant_."

Recognition dawned in Harry's eyes and he smiled again at Jo, this time with real warmth. "It _is_ a pleasure, then."

"You travel with the Doctor?" Jo asked.

"When he can talk me into it," Harry agreed, laughing when the Doctor scowled at him. "Oh, don't look at me like that, you loon."

"So, what're we going to do with them?" Clyde wondered, looking over at where the UNIT woman and the three aliens were trussed up.

"Colonel Karim can be dealt with by UNIT," Sarah Jane said sharply, giving the woman an acidic look.

"We should be able to deliver the Shansheeth to the Shansheeth Nest for them to face trial," the Doctor offered.

"Better than letting UNIT have them," Harry agreed drily. "You'd be picking their pieces up off the laboratory floors." He glanced over at Sarah Jane, who had pressed her lips together with disapproval. "And, yeah, I know, Torchwood's not much better."

"Torchwood?" Jo asked.

"Local organization with the same basic goals and principals as UNIT," Sarah Jane explained. "Harry works for the Cardiff branch."

Harry shrugged. "Like Torchwood better than UNIT, myself. It's smaller, so there's more to do. Less paperwork."

"Well!" the Doctor said, bouncing in place a bit to draw attention to himself and, with luck, keep Harry and Sarah Jane from getting into a new fight so soon after making up. "Harry, could you separate the Colonel and, I dunno. Leave a note?"

Harry snorted. "Yeah. No problem." He wandered over to set about doing that while the Doctor directed the rest of the motley crew into the TARDIS. Rani and Clyde held the doors open for Harry as he levitated the three Shansheeth inside, then took them deeper into the ship. The TARDIS, clever girl that she was, supplied Harry with a locked room to keep the aliens in. "Cheers, luv," he told her as he deposited the pile in and closed the door.

They'd mostly finished exclaiming over the redesigned inside by the time Harry got back, so the Doctor flipped a few levers and pressed a switch and they were on their way back to Sarah Jane's place, arriving in the attic.

The kids all shuffled out, shouting their good-byes over their shoulders.

"Still the same old TARDIS," Jo commented, coming around the central pillar from where she'd been standing during flight. "It doesn't matter what changed, it still... smells the same." She smiled for a long moment, then seemed to snap herself out of it. "Nope! Gotta say good-bye, or else I'd stay with you forever. Besides, I probably couldn't keep up any more." She chuckled and glanced over at Sarah Jane, who smiled back. "Get you into trouble with the Time Lords."

The Doctor coughed uncomfortably while Sarah Jane and Harry eyed him. "Yeah, I'd probably better go. You know me... Stuff to do." He turned and poked at the console a bit.

Sarah Jane took a deep breath and commented, "It's daft, though, because, well..." She reached over and wrapped her arm around Jo's back. "Well we were both saying... If, you ever died, we'd feel it somehow. We'd just know. But that's just silly, isn't it?" She glanced at the Doctor, almost hopeful.

The Doctor glanced over at the two women with a troubled look. "I don't know. Maybe not. Because between you and me, if that day ever comes..."

Both women leaned forward, nodding, while Harry considered them from the other side of the console.

"...I think the whole universe might just shiver," the Doctor continued in his serious, sad voice. After another moment, he exclaimed, "Bwuh!" and both women jumped.

"Loon," Harry muttered as the Doctor started laughing.

Jo and Sarah Jane laughed too and Jo stepped forward to hug the Doctor while Sarah Jane shook her head and looked over at Harry. "You knew what he was up to."

Harry rolled his eyes. "This incarnation can't be serious for more than two minutes. Even when flying himself into an explosion."

Sarah Jane blinked and glanced back at the Doctor. "He didn't."

Harry smiled bitterly and shrugged one shoulder, then came around the console. "Are we okay, now?"

Sarah Jane sighed. "Clyde almost died, Harry."

Harry nodded. "I know." He rubbed at the back of his head. "I have nightmares, sometimes, about what might have happened if Luke and Rani hadn't chased after me like they did." He glanced up at her with eyes filled with self-recrimination. "I'm sorry."

Sarah Jane reached out and touched his shoulder. "You're used to working with adults who can take care of themselves," she offered. "And I was a bit harsh."

Harry's lips curled with a smile. "I recall you telling me you never wanted to see my face again, even if the world was ending."

Sarah Jane laughed and drew him into a hug, which Harry gladly returned. He'd always liked the older companion, and although he knew it never really worked, he respected her need to deal peacefully with aliens. UNIT and Torchwood could both learn from her.

They drew apart after a moment and Harry asked, "So, is it okay if I ring you once I'm back in real time again? I sort of miss having someone else with kids to talk to."

Sarah Jane smiled and nodded. "Of course. How are yours, anyway?"

"They're doing pretty good. James is going into his second year of primary and Albus is about to start his first."

"About to?" Sarah Jane repeated.

Harry blinked, then sighed. "It's after the first of September. Of course."

Sarah Jane laughed. "It's the end of October. If you get back before now, just remember that I'm still not talking to you."

Harry chuckled and shook his head, then glanced over at where the Doctor and Jo were watching them with sheepish or knowing grins. "Oiy, git. If you don't get me back in time to see Albus off on his first day, I'll curse your bits."

The Doctor winced. "Noted."

The two women both laughed, then traded places; Sarah Jane went to hug the Doctor while Jo walked over to Harry and hugged him. "It was wonderful meeting you," Jo said.

"Same here," Harry agreed. "If you're ever in England again, look me up. Or look Sarah Jane up and she can call me over."

"Of course," Jo agreed.

Harry and the Doctor stood next to each other at the top of the stairs and waved as the two women shuffled out the front door. Once the door closed, the Doctor looked over at Harry. "I have a vague recollection of you asking me to teach you how to drive the TARDIS."

Harry cocked an eyebrow at him. "River can drive it," he replied, as if that explained everything.

The Doctor grimaced. "Still not too certain about that."

Harry chuckled and leaned up to plant a brief kiss on the Time Lord's cheek. "Come on. At least _someone_ should know how to pilot this poor girl when you're detained and need a last-minute rescue."

The Doctor snorted, but turned towards the console and started explaining what the different knobs and levers did.

-0-

They picked Amy and Rory up from their honeymoon, then sent them off on part two of Merlin knew how many. While the newly-weds were enjoying the sights of the Seefra system – a nine-planet system known as the 'Amusement Land of the Galaxy' – Harry managed to talk the Doctor into taking him back to September first, where he got to see Albus off for his first day at school and give his excuses to his family and boss. Ginny had rolled her eyes, far too used to Harry's long absences with the Doctor, even if she hated them, and Jack had demanded a detailed report on all planets/times/aliens/sexual encounters Harry enjoyed while on his journeys. Harry had politely told the immortal where he could shove his insatiable interest in Harry's sex life, then let the Doctor take him away to pick up Amy and Rory for another honeymooning spot.

Harry and the Doctor were enjoying a quiet moment near a supernova when the distress call came through.

"Worst timing," Harry complained, getting up from his spot on the floor with a groan.

"They've had worse," the Doctor pointed out, shutting the doors of the TARDIS and heading for the controls.

Harry grimaced, recalling one time that Amy and Rory had called while the two men were having sex. Luckily, the Doctor had only given Amy a crap communicator, so they had been no chance in the younger travellers thinking anything was up. Not that Amy and Rory weren't completely aware of the Doctor and Harry's relationship.

The Doctor whistled as he set them in flight towards the space liner they'd left them on that time. "Should send them a message when we're within sight. See what's gone wrong."

"Probably crashed or something," Harry muttered, taking over the flying as the Doctor typed out a message to the younger two passengers to let them know the Doctor and Harry were ready and willing to assist if they could.

"They haven't crashed," the Doctor reported as the small TARDIS screen picked up the craft in the cloud-cover of a planet.

"Yet," Harry replied. "Look at that engine." He nodded to where one of the engines was sputtering.

"You are getting to know _far_ too much about alien spacecrafts for my piece of mind," the Doctor replied even as he sent out his message to Amy and Rory.

Harry snorted and rolled his eyes. "Your own fault, git."

The Doctor grinned and reached around Harry to fiddle with the controls himself. "Message delivered. Scans show that the cloud-cover is an almost solid mass and there’s little space to land. The liner has sent out a request to the governing body to be allowed to land, but they haven't gotten an answer yet and there's been more than enough time."

"Planning to go down and check it out?" Harry replied.

The Doctor nodded. "Link your mobile to the TARDIS, would you? I want to know right away if Amy needs us for anything."

Harry shifted out of the way, letting the Doctor take over flying again and pulled out his mobile. Previous adventures away from the TARDIS in the past weeks had made him a master of linking his mobile and the ship together and he barely had to think about it to do it. They'd tried finding some way to just let Amy and Rory connect to Harry's mobile direct, but it wasn't working for some reason. The Doctor blamed it on faulty technology, Harry blamed it on his lover losing his mind.

They finally landed with a jerk and hurried out to see where they'd landed.

"A roof," Harry said, looking around. Above them, the sky teemed with clouds shot through by a beam of light from the building they were on the roof of. Below, he could faintly hear the sounds of Christmas-time in the teeming streets.

"I'm feeling adventurous," the Doctor explained, approaching the chimney.

"No. Not a chance."

The Doctor grinned madly and climbed on top.

"Doctor, no," Harry repeated.

"Live a little, Harry!"

"I am not going to play Santa Claus with you!"

The Doctor's grin widened. "Suit yourself," he replied, then dropped down.

Harry sighed and looked back at the waiting TARDIS. "Bloody lunatic," he told her and she hummed in agreement. He couldn't help but smile at her, then apparated to the general vicinity of the Doctor, earning him some mildly terrified looks, but the Doctor helpfully distracted them all by blabbering madly about having met Father Christmas once, leaving Harry to observe the large room around them and fade back against the wall. Previous experience had taught him that he was often best off just letting his lover talk and the Time Lord would get around to the point.

Eventually.

Harry sighed as the Doctor went on about the flashing control panel, then got distracted talking about the clouds, the frozen girl in the middle of the room and returned to trying to figure out the controls that controlled the clouds, only to find out they were isomorphic.

The fellow in charge of the estate, Kazran Sardick, finally decided he'd had enough and ordered his men to see them out.

The Doctor ducked the man that grabbed him and Harry stepped into the way of the man when he started back towards the Doctor, who walked up to Kazran and said, "There are four thousand and three people I won't allow to die tonight. Do you know where that puts you?"

"Where?" Kazran asked, looking unimpressed.

"Four thousand and four."

"Doctor," Harry warned.

Kazran just looked sort of amused. "Was that a sort of threaty-thing?"

"Whatever happens tonight, remember... you brought it on yourself," the Doctor said.

"Yeah, yeah right. Get him out of here," Kazran ordered, but Harry was already leading the Doctor away, frowning at the butler/guard who looked ready to drag them out.

And then the young boy in the family of poor people who'd been in the manor threw some coal at Kazran.

Kazran almost hit the boy, but he stopped himself without anyone interfering and that got the Doctor thinking. Wondering.

Finally, the Doctor and Harry showed themselves out. "Anything?" Harry wondered.

"Not a thing," the Doctor admitted and reached shamelessly into Harry's pocket for his mobile. "What have you got?"

"Bitter old man who needs a taste of what it's like to be in the shoes of the people he apparently controls," Harry muttered.

"You don't think he knows what it's like to be controlled?" the Doctor wondered, dialling the number to the make-shift phone Amy had. (They still hadn't managed to find Martha's old phone – the Doctor thought it might have been burnt up when he'd regenerated, and after six summoning spells, Harry was inclined to believe him – which meant Amy and Rory were stuck using whatever mad thing the Doctor could piece together that day.) "Amy!"

Harry rolled his eyes and left the Doctor to his phone call, turning to look around at the town, which was very old-world Earth. Or, at the least, very Diagon Alley-esque. "Cute," he commented, eyeing a large clock face that was inscribed with an elaborate 'S'. A glance at a near-by light pole showed another scrawled 's' on the side, but also something far more curious. "Doctor," he called, walking up to the light.

The Doctor was busy dividing his attention between the mobile and the father of the family they'd met inside.

Harry reached up and cupped his hands around one of the tiny fish circling the light pole. He brought it down to eye-level and grinned at it. "You're cute," he decided, snorting as the little creature tried nibbling his palm and only really tickled.

"Fish that can swim in fog," the Doctor murmured, walking over to Harry and glancing down into his cupped hands. Another couple fish floated down and and nibbled at his hair. "I love new planets."

"They sort of tickle," Harry commented, holding the fish out to the Doctor.

The older man grinned and and let it nibble at his finger. "Why would anybody fear you cute tiny fish?"

Harry grimaced and let his hands fall away from the fish. "Maybe they're not all so tiny and cute. And if they're interested in eating fingers..."

The Doctor grimaced and turned back to the mobile. "Careful up there," he told Amy.

Amy, of course, demanded that he do something to save them.

"That child..." Harry muttered while the Doctor smacked his forehead and paced, trying to come up with something.

The clock ticked over to eleven at night and Christmas carols came through the speakers. Amy evidently asked what the music was because the Doctor repeated a few times that it was, "A Christmas carol," before inspiration stole across his face.

"Uh-oh," Harry said.

The Doctor grinned up at the sky. "Merry Christmas, Kazran Sardick."

"What are you plotting?" Harry asked.

The Doctor grinned at him.

" _Doctor!_ " Amy shouted through the phone.

"Come on. Tell me."

"Do you trust me?" the Doctor asked Harry, closing the mobile.

"Do I–? What sort of barmy question is that?!"

"Do you trust me?" the Doctor asked again, still grinning, but there was something a bit more serious in his eyes now.

"Course I trust you," Harry agreed. "What are you planning?"

The Doctor handed the mobile back over, leaning forward so he was practically nose-to-nose with Harry. "Do you know Charles Dickens' story _A Christmas Carol_?"

"The one where the man is visited by ghosts to change his mind about how he treats people during Christmas?" Harry replied.

"That's the one!"

"Yeah, I know it. Went and saw a production of it with Ginny and the kids a few years ago. What's that got to do with..." Harry trailed off, eyes widening.

The Doctor's grin was back, mad as ever. "Ready to play a ghost?"

Harry's lips curled with amusement. "I was _born_ ready," he declared and the Doctor laughed.

-0-

Harry agreed to stay behind and keep an eye on Kazran. Make sure nothing bad happened to him while the Doctor was off mucking about in his past and changing it around. The Doctor didn't think anything particularly bad would happen, but he didn't want to take any chances.

Considering how adventures with the Doctor usually went, Harry thought he was probably right to worry about the psychological effects on Kazran.

Other than some denial, Kazran didn't seem to be having much trouble with his changing past. It probably helped that things were being recorded, which also allowed Harry to keep up. It wasn't until the shark broke into the cupboard and the connection was cut that Kazran started having trouble and Harry was immediately there with a calming charm and a summoned cup of tea.

Harry helped Kazran back into his chair and conjured one of his own across from the man. He sat there and watched as Kazran sipped his tea, looking stressed. "Will you tell me?" he asked after a moment.

Kazran attempted to focus on him, but he was still trapped in his memories. "I... can't..."

"Talk to me," Harry said again, smiling. "It might help."

Kazran was silent for a long moment, then he started narrating the attack of the shark, how it had swallowed the Doctor's screwdriver. How the Doctor had dared to reach inside the shark's mouth to get the screwdriver back. How they had to save the dying shark. How they freed Abigail Pettigrew.

They were interrupted, briefly, by the Doctor's quest for a code to open the door to the freezing chamber.

Kazran pulled out a box of photos and he waved Harry down to the floor, where they looked through them and the older man spoke fondly of his Christmas Eves with the Doctor and Abigail. Harry laughed with him, enjoying stories of riding a shark-drawn carriage and visiting far-off times and places.

And then, suddenly, Kazran got really quiet and all of the joy seemed to bleed away from him. Harry reached out and touched his arm. "Kazran, what is it?" he asked.

Kazran pulled away and quickly set about shoving all the pictures back in the box.

"Kazran?"

"Leave," Kazran snapped. "You just–" He turned to Harry and a terrible sadness and heartbreak flooded his eyes. "Just _leave_!" he shouted.

Harry climbed to his feet. "Okay," he said. "Okay, I'll leave." And he apparated away to where he knew the Doctor would be waiting, just outside Kazran's bedroom window. There, they stood and watched as the old man reached into his desk drawer and pulled out the other half of the sonic screwdriver, staring at it.

"He's not going to free them," Harry said, watching the man inside the house.

"Why?" the Doctor wondered. "What happened?"

"I don't know. He wouldn't say."

The Doctor nodded to himself and pulled Harry's mobile from the wizard's pocket. "We'll see what Amy can do."

"On to the present?" Harry asked.

The Doctor gave a bitter smile and quickly outlined the plan to Amy and Rory. Then the two men on the rooftop leaned over the phone and listened as Kazran explained that Abigail would die after one more day. And then he refused to free the ship.

"Time for the future," the Doctor murmured, glancing up at Harry.

Harry nodded and led the way into the TARDIS. They piloted the TARDIS back into the past and, with a little cajoling, the Doctor managed to talk a young Kazran into coming along with them, then he left them in the TARDIS and walked out to meet the older Kazran. To talk to him while Harry and the boy stood just inside the open door.

"Do you know why I'm going to let those people die?" older Kazran said to the Doctor. "Not a plan; I don't get anything from it... It's just that I don't care. I'm not like you. I don't even want to be like you. I don't and never, ever will care!"

"And I don't believe that," the Doctor replied.

"Then show me the future. Prove me wrong."

"The future is right here and now," Harry offered, ushering the younger Kazran out of the TARDIS. As the older Kazran turned back to look at them, surprise on his face, Harry asked, "Kazran, is this what you want?"

The two Kazrans stared at one another, then the younger murmured, "Dad?" and the elder stepped forward to strike him, fury in his eyes.

But he managed to stop himself and Harry pulled the young boy into an embrace as the elder whispered apologies.

The Doctor met Harry's eyes over the hunched form of the elder Kazran and said, "Kazran, we don't have much time."

The four of them raced up the stairs, intent on saving the ship, but the controls wouldn't work. Kazran was too different. Too willing to be kind. The machine didn't recognise him.

They figured out that they could send music through the sonic screwdriver to calm the clouds, but they needed Abigail. They needed to use her last day.

They made their way back down the stairs, no one quite willing, but all of them needing to save the lives of the people on the ship.

Standing in front of Abigail's box, the elder Kazran asked, "Could you do it? Could you do this? Think about it, Doctor. One last day with your beloved. Which day would you chose?"

The Doctor looked over at Harry and the wizard smiled and suggested, "An ordinary day." And the Doctor smiled, but it was so very painful.

"Christmas," Abigail offered in response, stepping from her frozen prison. "Christmas day."

Harry entwined his hand with the Doctor's and the Doctor pulled the younger Kazran into a friendly half-hug. The three watched as Abigail and Kazran were reunited at last.

And then they were running, running up the stairs and out into the street. The Doctor hooked up the screwdriver to the sound system and Abigail started singing.

And the two Kazrans, Harry and the Doctor stood back and watched as it began to snow.

"A last day to remember," Harry said and the elder Kazran looked at him with a sad but wonderful smile. Next to Harry, the Doctor wrapped an arm around his shoulders and they both smiled at one another.

After a time, they took the young Kazran back home.

"Let's make snowmen!" the Doctor demanded as the landed again in the present. "Snowmen!"

Harry touched his shoulder and the Doctor turned to look at him, grinning. "Snowmen?" Harry asked.

"Snowmen!"

"You're barmy."

The Doctor grinned all the wider and went dashing off to start his snowman making.

They made quite a few snowmen together and started a small snow-war with some passers-by.

"Think Amy and Rory will ever be back?" Harry wondered after an hour or so.

"Eventually," the Doctor agreed and threw another snowball at Harry, hitting him in the face.

"You–!"

The Doctor laughed and dodged all return fire, which was quite the feat, seeing as how Harry was using his magic to double the amount of snow he could throw.

Finally, Amy and Rory caught up to them. Some snarky jokes were made about their choice in clothing and they started back towards the TARDIS, Rory asking about another honeymoon spot, which sent the Doctor blabbering on about a carnivorous moon made of honey.

"Are you okay?" Amy asked Harry as they trailed behind.

Harry glanced over at her, then back up at their men. "If you could pick the last day you had with Rory, what would it be?"

Amy swallowed and slowed to a stop, shivering in the snow. "I don't...know..." she replied.

Harry nodded.

"What would you...?"

Harry smiled. "The most ordinary day in the universe," he replied and pulled out his wand to cast a warming charm on her. "Come on. Let's get you inside."

"No complaints from me," Amy agreed and they hurried over to where the Doctor was waiting for them.

Before they could speak, Rory poked his head out and said, "Ah, your phone was ringing. Someone called Marilyn. Actually sounds like _the_ Marilyn."

The Doctor looked a bit shifty.

"Doctor?"

The Doctor glanced briefly over at Harry, who had an unamused look on his face. "Tell her I'll phone her back," he told Rory. "And, and that was never a real...chapel..."

Harry pulled out his wand and rested it against the skin between the Doctor's eyes. "How badly do I need to curse you this time?"

"I–! It isn't–!"

"Painful, then," Harry decided.

The Doctor cleared his throat and hurried past Rory into the TARDIS, letting out a rather undignified squeak when a jet of light shot past him.

"Are you really going to curse him?" Amy wondered as Harry shot a few more jets of coloured light after the retreating alien.

"Tempting," Harry replied, then ducked past Rory and picked up the phone himself. "Hello, Marilyn Monroe?" He smiled a bit evilly when the woman on the other end responded. "If you ever call my lover again, I will hunt you down and kill you very, very slowly. Understood?"

"You're a bit scary when you're angry," Rory mumbled, shooting Harry a disturbed look.

Harry hung up the phone. "I think I'll let him stew for a bit. Anywhere you two want to go?"

Amy glanced over at Rory, then turned to Harry with a smile. "How about a day off?" she suggested. "Just one day in the TARDIS."

Harry smiled a happy smile. "Brilliant," he replied and set the controls.

But before he could set them off, the Doctor poked his head around the window into the hallways of the TARDIS. "Can I make a suggestion?"

"You've done nothing but make suggestions," Amy pointed out a bit drily.

The Doctor looked pleadingly at Harry. "As an apology?"

Harry raised an eyebrow, then looked over at Amy, who seemed almost amused. "This should be good," the wizard commented.

Amy shrugged. "Alright. I think I'd enjoy the Doctor's version of an apology."

The Doctor cleared his throat and stepped out into the console room, eyeing Harry with some concern. "Yes, yes, fun. Enjoyable..." He turned and looked at Amy and Rory. "You'll want to change. I mean, Rory might fit in, but you should probably change anyway." He turned to Harry, who was opening his mouth, and said, "Warmish climate, I think. Early June. Might be a bit of a breeze, but it should be lovely. Good view of the stars."

"Night-time?" Harry clarified.

The Doctor took a moment to think about it, then nodded. "Night-time. Bit of a breeze. Lovely night, though."

"Come on," Amy said, taking Rory's arm and dragging him towards the TARDIS wardrobe.

"Is this his idea of romance?" Rory whispered to Harry as the wizard joined them to find more weather-appropriate clothing.

"It's his idea of an apology," Harry corrected.

"You should just curse him and be done with it."

"He tends not to learn his lesson too well."

"No," Amy agreed, eyeing a cowering Rory, "I don't think he would."

Harry snickered.

-0-

The Doctor was practically bouncing when they landed and the three humans shot him mildly worried looks. "This is going to be great!" he declared. "Best apology ever!"

"What would he know about apologies?" Amy wondered.

The Doctor ignored her and, taking Harry's hand, dashed over to the door. "Open it," he said to Harry.

Harry sighed and did as he was told, then let out a quiet breath at the sight of the castle rising before the ring of mountains that protected it. "Hogwarts..." he whispered.

"What? Hogwarts?" Amy hurried over to Harry's side and stared out at the castle. "I can see it," she realised.

"I parked us inside the wards," the Doctor informed them, clearly proud of himself.

"What have I told you about driving the TARDIS through wizarding wards?" Harry demanded, giving his lover an irritated look.

"Materialised inside them. Not the same thing. But it's _Hogwarts_! See, best apology!"

"It's pretty good," Amy agreed.

Harry raked his eyes over the castle, observing. "Late June," he murmured. "School's still in session." He glanced back at the Doctor. "When are we?"

The Doctor grinned. "Take your best guess."

"After my parents went here, before the second war," Harry reported without pause, having already picked out details like the existence of the whomping willow and the lack of rebuilding from after the final battle. "Knowing you, it's probably during my years at the school. I don't sense any dementors, so it's definitely not my third year, no maze, so it's not my fourth. Not feeling the tragedy of my sixth year, and I doubt even _you_ would be mad enough to take my back to the end of my fifth year. So that leaves my second and..." Harry trailed off, eyes widening.

"Your first year," the Doctor agreed.

"We've got company," Rory commented from behind Amy, pointing at where a group of people were walking towards them, wands drawn.

"Excellent!" The Doctor slipped past Harry and Amy and started towards the approaching witches and wizards. "Hello! I'm the Doctor! Beautiful night!"

"He's going to get himself killed," Amy commented.

"Saves me the trouble," Harry replied, but there was no feeling in his words and he moved to catch up to his lover, not quite going for his wand, but prepared to protect the lunatic against any spells sent their way.

"It is a most lovely night," Albus Dumbledore agreed from the head of the procession. "I'm Albus Dumbledore. Might I ask how you appeared on our grounds?"

"Oh, a bit of this, a bit of that," the Doctor replied agreeably.

Harry sighed and shook his head. "You..."

"Potter!" Snape shouted in horror from just behind the Headmaster.

There was a rather sudden cacophony of voices as all of the wizards and witches there turned to stare at Harry, awed. They seemed mostly confused about who he was, though, as James Potter was ten years dead and Harry Potter was not yet twelve.

"In future, let's aim not to cause a panic?" Harry muttered to the grinning Doctor as Amy and Rory hurried up behind them. "Perhaps just materialise in the Headmaster's office?"

"How _are_ you going to explain that?" Rory wondered, looking back at the TARDIS.

Harry grunted and pulled something out of his pocket. It was a card that shimmered uncertainly, the information obscured, but the picture was clear. Since the Headmaster was the only one not shouting, Harry held the card out to him and Dumbledore took it with an interested look, which quickly turned to understanding.

"What's that?" Amy whispered.

"Unspeakable identification card," Harry muttered out of the corner of his mouth. "Was supposed to get rid of it when I resigned, but it had been lost on the TARDIS. Found it a couple days ago."

"So does that mean you can cause as much trouble as you want in the name of the Department of Mysteries?"

Harry grinned. "As long as it's before I would have resigned and they have no way to see if I should have been there? Totally."

"Brilliant."

Dumbledore had finally managed to get the professors under control and handed Harry back his card. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Unspeakables. Now, might I ask what you're doing here?"

"He's a lunatic," Amy immediately offered, pointing at the Doctor.

"Certified," the Doctor agreed.

Harry sighed and slipped his card away. "Headmaster, I'm afraid our business here is a bit confidential. Might we speak in your office?"

"Of course, my dear boy," Dumbledore agreed and motioned for the guests to follow them.

"Close the TARDIS door," Harry suggested to the Doctor as a few of the professors looked hopefully back at the TARDIS.

"Hm. Good point." The Doctor snapped his fingers and the door snapped shut behind them, earning the man some awed looks.

"Couldn't they just use magic to open the door?" Amy wondered, having seen Harry use an _alohomora_ once to get them inside, since he didn't have a key. Honestly, considering how close Harry and the Doctor were, she still wasn't quite certain why the wizard was without a key. Even Rory had one.

"The TARDIS is smarter than that," the Doctor said by way of explanation, then hurried forward to blabber on with Dumbledore about some muggle sweet or another.

Harry rolled his eyes. "Lunatic."

Amy and Rory laughed a bit nervously.

Harry glanced back at them, concern in his eyes. "Okay?"

"It's not often we get to walk into the plot of a novel we've been reading our whole lives," Amy replied. "You said this is your–"

Harry cleared his throat and gave Snape a dark look, since he was a bit too close for comfort, then silently cast a charm to let them speak freely. "My first year," he agreed. "If the Doctor's timeline is right, Voldemort will have just tried to steal the Stone and I will have stopped him."

"So you're in hospital right now?" Rory clarified.

Harry nodded. "Pretty much."

"What's so great about your being in hospital?" Amy wondered. "Is he going to apologise by going and hugging your eleven-year-old self?"

"Don't give him any ideas," Harry muttered.

Once they reached the Headmaster's office, Harry again found himself requesting that the meeting be confidential with just Harry's group and the Headmaster, but Snape wasn't going to have it.

"Let a bunch of unknown wizards and witches alone with you, Headmaster? This is not a good idea. What if they've come to kill you?"

"I think the Headmaster is more than capable of holding his own if we suddenly decided to come here and kill him," Amy pointed out, glaring at Snape.

Harry made a mental note that Amy was a Snape-hater, then realised he'd been spending too much free time at his desk paying attention to the fandom.

"Headmaster, you are not infallible," Snape continued, ignoring Amy.

Harry sighed and offered, "First off, I'm the only one of us with a wand–"

"What?!"

"How can that be?!"

"Muggles? In Hogwarts?"

Harry gave the Doctor a pointed look and he smiled a bit sheepishly. "Sorry?"

Harry sighed and shook his head, then pulled out his wand and intoned, "I swear on my magic that I have no intention to harm Headmaster Dumbledore and, should it come to it, I will do everything in my power to protect him from any harm."

Dumbledore smiled. "Is that sufficient, Severus?"

Snape looked almost furious, but he nodded and stalked away. Slowly, the other Heads of House followed his example until it was just the Headmaster and the time travellers.

"Tea? Sherbet lemon?" Dumbledore offered, summoning a tea service and waving one hand towards the sweets on the desk.

"I'd love some of both, but I don't suppose you have any green tea?" the Doctor said, snatching a handful of candy.

"The candy is laced with a calming potion," Harry quietly warned the two muggles as Rory reached for a sherbet lemon. The Doctor had already stuffed two in his mouth, but Harry figured his lover could use a bit of calming down, and previous tests had already proven that the potion wouldn't do anything harmful to the Time Lord.

"Green tea?" Dumbledore replied, frowning. "You know, I don't think we do."

Harry silently summoned some from the TARDIS and handed it over to the Doctor, who grinned. "Cheers!"

"Have more sherbet lemons," Harry replied and the Doctor blinked in surprise.

Dumbledore handed out tea to his other guests while the Doctor popped another candy into his mouth. Once they were all served, the Headmaster asked, "So, what is it I can do for you? And are you all Unspeakables?"

"I'm the only official Unspeakable," Harry replied easily, relaxing back into his chair, "but the Doctor is a part of a muggle organization which works with the Unspeakables and he tends to pick up strays."

"Are you calling me a stray?" Amy demanded.

Harry grinned at her. "A lovable one," he assured her and got smacked for it. Rory just sighed while the Doctor grinned and popped another sherbet lemon in his mouth.

Dumbledore chuckled. "Mr Potter?"

Harry glanced over at him, one eyebrow raised in amusement, but saw no point in denying he was of the Potter line; he knew he looked like his father and both James and Albus looked so much like him. "Headmaster Dumbledore?"

"What brings you here?" the Headmaster wondered.

"Sir," Harry said quietly, "this very night, a brave boy collected something from behind a mirror of dreams that most people would crave very much."

Dumbledore looked over his half-moon spectacles and pierced Harry with the look he'd often received in school. "You came for the Stone," he murmured, and there was disappointment in his voice.

Harry shrugged. "To crave that which we cannot have... is it not the greatest curse of humanity? Have not you, yourself, succumbed to such a fate?" He held up his own wand for inspection.

Shock flashed in Dumbledore's eyes and then he closed them, looking so very tired. "It is because I have succumbed to temptation that I wish to protect you from it," he said.

The Doctor cleared his throat, eyes sharp. "I thought you got rid of that," he said to Harry.

Harry smiled. "It found me again. Or, more specifically, it refused to let me go. Remember when I broke my old wand?"

"Ah." The Doctor leaned back in his seat and eyed the sherbet lemons in his hand oddly. "Calming potion."

Amy snorted.

Dumbledore leaned forward on his desk. "And the last?"

Harry shrugged. "Perhaps."

Dumbledore nodded and leaned back in his chair, absently drying his beard, which had ended up in his tea. "What use have you for the Philosopher's Stone?" he wondered. "The Potters are not a poor family, and if you have all the Hallows..."

"The Hallows are fine if you want to live through any wound," Harry said and he couldn't quite keep the bitterness out of his voice. "Perhaps they would let me live past my natural life-span, but I've seen what happens to someone who ages without death, and I wouldn't wish such a fate on even Voldemort."

The Doctor shuddered in his seat and returned to his tea with a vengeance, only pausing to pop another sherbet lemon in his mouth.

Dumbledore considered his guests. The younger two looked almost confused by the subject matter, though they were keeping up far better than Dumbledore thought a couple of muggles should have been able to. The elder two had shadows in their eyes from seeing too much, but there was a fighting spirit there, too; a light that couldn't be stopped.

And Dumbledore smiled.

Harry narrowed his eyes, suspicious of that smile. "Yes?"

"If I gave you this Stone, what would you use it for? To live forever in peace?"

"My life is anything but peaceful," Harry returned drily. "And I have no interest in living 'forever'. I only wish to live for so long as there is someone there for me to live with, and that's going to be for a long time now." He glanced over at the Doctor, who smiled, then looked back at Dumbledore. "And I wouldn't keep it just for myself. I have another friend who... I suppose you could say he has his own version of the Hallows, but he didn't get a choice in the matter. He's lived a very long time and seen so many people die. I would like to give him the chance to live with someone for longer than just the blink of an eye."

"You think Ianto would take you up on the offer?" the Doctor wondered, sitting forward.

Harry raised an eyebrow at him. "Seriously? Anyone who spends ten minutes in Jack's presence would take me up on the offer." He smiled and added, "Even if it was just for the chance to say, 'I'm the one who finally killed Jack Harkness!' "

The Doctor laughed. "Your weapons officer?"

"And about half of UNIT."

"Only half?"

"Mm. Good point."

Dumbledore cleared his throat. "And who would you spend your life with, my boy?"

Harry and the Doctor traded looks, then pointed at each other. At Dumbledore's curious look, the Doctor offered, "I'm not human. Alien, me, and my people live a _long_ time."

"He's already well over nine hundred," Harry agreed.

Dumbledore found himself more than willing to believe that, in spite of the Doctor's young appearance, and he reached into a drawer to pull out the Stone. Before he held it out, though, he asked, "Will you tell me? Your name?"

And Harry smiled. "Sir, you already know my name."

Dumbledore smiled back and handed over the Stone. "Use it well, Harry."

"Thank you, sir."

They all stood and said their good-byes.

And just before Harry let the door fall closed behind him, Philosopher's Stone clutched in one hand, he turned back to the old wizard at the desk. "Professor?"

"Yes, my boy?"

"I forgive you," Harry said and then hurried off after his lover and friends.

"Are we going the right way?" Rory wondered as Harry slipped his arm into the Doctor's.

"Yeah. The staircase is just 'round the next corner," Harry agreed.

"All right?" the Doctor asked.

"I'm not sure," Harry admitted, then smiled up at the Doctor. "What do you say to a day off?"

The Doctor smiled. "Sounds fantastic," he said in a poor Northern accent.

Harry rolled his eyes and laughed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Considering the sort of lives Harry and the Doctor live, it seems only right that Harry would think an ordinary day would be the best day ever.  
> The last bit was practically demanded by Shara. It wasn't as funny as she'd wanted it to be, but I had a lot of trouble making it funny. Couldn't see Albus just handing the Stone over, no matter who Harry was. Or, perhaps, _because of_ who Harry was.  
>  And I felt that this Harry could finally forgive Albus for everything. For all the secrets, because this Harry has children of his own now, and he's known some wonderful and terrible people and he's done some wonderful and terrible things.
> 
> Had a bit of trouble fitting Harry into this episode, but I hope I managed well enough.  
> Hope you enjoyed it, and that the Sarah Jane bit didn't confuse too many people. Like my beta. XD


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The last of this fic that I will be writing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I've been telling people this on a sort of person-to-person basis, but it occurs to me that I should actually make a proper announcement, especially for those who've been so patiently (or not) awaiting an update to this series: Uhm, I started getting rather annoyed with DW near the end of season 6, and I _really_ hated Clara, once she came aboard, though I was determined to write this, anyway, maybe after a break for other fandoms? But then came that fucking _Day of the Doctor_ bullshit episode, where they went and effectively erased my favourite Doctor, nine, without a bloody care, and I am so done with Moffat. I can't imagine there's anything that will get me to come back to the series, save him quitting, so I haven't watched any more and thinking about Moffat's seasons makes me want to commit murder, so **I'm not finishing this fic**. Sorry/not sorry.
> 
> That said, rather than post a note-chapter or update the a/n at the end of last chapter and chance half of you not seeing it ever, I figured I'd leave you with what I've written of this next chapter. It doesn't get to the end of the scene, so sorry for the open ending. Not sure where my notes got to, so I can't leave a bulleted list or anything about what I'd decided to include from this season. *shrugs*

Harry was working on a arrangement for a regular when he heard the sound of the TARDIS. "The hell?" he muttered, stepping out of his empty shop and looking around his desk to see the blue box materialising by the back door. 

_"Oh my God,"_ Martha could be heard over their headsets, the sound of Jack's military boots heavy on the stairs. _"Oh. My. **God**."_

"Is that the _TARDIS_?" Lois whispered to Harry as he passed her desk on the way around the table. 

The door popped open and the Doctor stepped out, grin widening when he caught sight of Harry. "Hello!" 

"What the bloody hell are you doing here?" Harry asked as Jack, Mickey, Ianto, and Martha all came to a stumbling halt at the foot of the steps. Gwen and Johnson were both out on holiday, or they'd probably be there too. (Well, Gwen would; Johnson would more likely find a readily defensible position and aim her favourite gun at the Doctor even after Jack ordered her to stand down.) 

"I came to pick you up," the Doctor explained, glancing around at the building. "And maybe see your place of work. Most impressive." His eyes lit on the crowd at the bottom of the stairs. "Why are you lot just _standing_ there?" 

"I'm trying to decide whether to shoot you, or kiss you," Jack announced. 

The Doctor blinked. "Ah. Perhaps neither?" he suggested, looking a little worried. 

Jack laughed and the lot of them finally moved forward. Jack and Martha shared hugs with the Doctor while Ianto and Mickey settled on handshakes. Lois was introduced by Jack when she finally came over. 

Harry just leaned back against the conference table and watched the Doctor with a frown. When the man finally turned in his direction, expression waiting for his greeting, Harry said, "Pick me up for what?" 

The Doctor blinked again, some of his good humour fading. "What? Oh!" He scrabbled at his jacket for a moment and came out with a blue envelope, which he held out towards Harry. "An invitation! Addressed to both of us." 

Harry stepped forward to collect the missive while Martha asked, "How'd someone even get it to you?" 

"Intergalactic post, of course," the Doctor informed her, as if it was the most obvious thing in the universe. 

"I can see that," Jack muttered, looking at the stamps covering half the front of the envelope. "Who's it from?" 

"No idea," the Doctor admitted as Harry pulled out the card inside. 

Harry frowned. "A date, time, and coordinates? For what?" 

"No idea," the Doctor repeated, sounding quite cheerful about that. "Invitation," he added at Harry's faintly amused look. "To Utah." 

"Sounds like someone's sending you on a hot date," Jack teased, draping his arm around Harry's shoulders. 

"Or a trap," Lois helpfully offered. 

"I love traps!" the Doctor exclaimed. 

"Right," Mickey announced, "I think I liked it better when you thought we were all apes." He turned to Harry, disbelieving. "Did he just say–?"

"He's getting old," Harry replied drily, rolling his eyes, "you'll have to forgive him." 

"Oiy!" 

The humans shared a laugh at the Doctor's expense while he failed at looking insulted. He eventually gave it up as a bad job and just grinned outright. 

"I suppose this means you're off for a couple months, again," Jack said to Harry once they'd calmed down. 

"I suppose so," Harry agreed, then turned to the Doctor. "Let me finish that arrangement, then we can head off." 

"Arrangement? Arrangement of what?" the Doctor asked, slipping around Martha and Lois to follow the wizard to his shop. "Oh, _flowers_. Right. Forgot about that." 

"It's a wonder you remembered my place of employment," Harry replied, amused. 

"Hard to forget it," the Doctor murmured, glancing back at the one-way glass, as if he could see through it and into the main office. 

Harry touched his headset and turned off the microphone, though he could still hear the others making bets about how long he'd be gone this time and whether or not they'd be flying into a trap. "Why come here? Why not wait until I got home in a couple hours? Like you usually do." 

The Doctor leaned on the counter next to the flowers Harry was working with. "I wanted to see them," he admitted. "Don't know when I'll get the chance again, and I know they bother you about it sometimes." 

Harry shrugged. "Sure they do, but that's to be expected." He glanced over at his lover. "You've got a lot of friends, and they think about you often enough, especially for those whose daily lives involve aliens. Sarah Jane and I go out for tea every week or so, and I met up with Jo a couple months ago, when she was in town. Every once in a while, I recognise a name on a flower order from your stories, and Wilfred calls in every other week or so to order flowers from me and we talk about how Donna's doing, or whether you've been about when I pop by to deliver them." 

The Doctor was quiet for a moment, then asked, "How is she?" 

"She's doing well. She and Shaun are expecting their first kid in five months or so. Wilf said he thinks it's a girl, but he's not sure one way or the other, because the tests always come back a bit odd." 

The Doctor winced. "Ah. Yes, I suppose that might happen. Just enough Time Lord in her to confuse things. Shouldn't be a problem for her or the baby, though," he added, flashing a reassuring smile. 

Harry smiled back. "We figured it should be okay, since you didn't give any specific warnings about children, but I saw to it that her doctor's a squib who knows to contact me if anything unusual happens, and both Wilf and Sylvia have my number, as well." 

"Sounds like you've got things well in hand." 

"Mm." Harry placed the last of the flowers in the vase and took a step back to look at it. "I learned a long time ago the joys of being one of the few of your companions that remains on the planet and can actually get in contact with you." 

"Ah. Yes, well..." 

"We should get you a new mobile," Harry added as he stepped forward to switch a couple of the flowers. "I'm tired of depending on the TARDIS phone or whatever you've cobbled together that time." 

"I _like_ making my own!" 

Harry shot him a _look_. "I like knowing I'll be able to reach you." 

"I'm not _that_ bad." 

"You really are, actually," Harry disagreed before turning his microphone back on. "Hey, Lo?" 

_"Yeah, Harry?"_

_"Oh, are you two done being naughty in there?"_ Jack asked, a lecherous note to his voice. 

Harry rolled his eyes and carefully moved the flower arrangement to the cabinet he kept the other arrangements that were ready for pick-up in. "I've finished the arrangement for Mrs Winterbourne. She's supposed to be by at four to collect it." 

_"I'll see to it,"_ Lois promised. _"Anything else?"_

"Mm..." Harry considered the cabinet for a moment before closing it. "A couple of the usual. If Andrew rings my desk again, tell him to use my bloody mobile; it's on the business card for a reason. And if Mr Dide–"

Lois laughed, as did most of the others. _"Harry, I'll be fine. I **have** done this before."_

Harry smiled in spite of himself and led the Doctor back into the main hub. The lot of them were still near the TARDIS, but Ianto had whipped up some coffee and the ladies were both sitting at the table. "I know, I know. I can't help but worry, though," he said as he stopped at his desk to shut down his computer and gather the few things he'd want to take with him. 

"So, Doctor, any idea how long you're stealing my second favourite employee away for?" Jack asked. 

"Only second favourite?" the Doctor wondered, looking back at Harry. 

"I won't let him sleep with me," Harry explained. "Ianto's the favourite, I'm second best." 

"Why am I not surprised...?" 

"You know me too well," Jack offered with a laugh. "Come on, Doctor." 

"No idea," the Doctor replied. "Depends on how long we spend in this time frame." 

"And your driving," Harry added. 

"At least a month, then," Martha suggested. "Possibly two." 

"I was gonna go with a whole year," Mickey put in. 

"I can see why they're not the favourites," the Doctor murmured to Harry, who laughed. 

Martha stood as the two men reached the TARDIS. "I don't suppose we're allowed in?" she wondered. "Harry said she looks different." 

The Doctor considered that for a moment, then shrugged and waved for them to follow, so the whole Torchwood group followed the Time Lord inside, all of them letting out impressed sounds at the new look. Jack distracted the Doctor quickly enough with something technical that the rest of them didn't pretend to understand, and Mickey and Martha dragged a bemused Ianto back towards the bedrooms. Lois followed Harry up to the console, staring at the various little things strewn out over it like she wanted to play with them, but wasn't sure it would be allowed. 

Harry smiled faintly at his co-worker, then touched the central column. "Hey there, girl. Has he been behaving himself?" he asked, ignoring the odd look Lois shot him. 

The TARDIS gave a quiet whir and Harry felt a sense of amusement. 

"Well, behaving himself as much as he ever does, then," Harry corrected, familiar enough with his lover to know that he _never_ 'behaved himself' in a manner anyone would find proper. 

The TARDIS let out a faint tinkling noise from a couple of the odds-and-ends on her console, which Harry had come to translate as a laugh. 

"The TARDIS actually understands you?" Lois whispered, intrigued. 

"She's sentient," Harry agreed, brushing a hand over the edge of the console. "She can't really talk back, of course, but she finds her own way of getting her point across." His faint smile turned fond. "She's also quite good at making me get out of bed." 

The TARDIS let out her laugh noise again and Harry chuckled with her. 

Lois shook her head at the two of them and glanced briefly back towards Jack and the Doctor before asking, "Why don't you stay here? You're always so much happier when you're talking about him." 

Harry smile faded and he leaned carefully against the console. "I can't," he replied. "Trust me, I would _love_ to stay on the TARDIS for the rest of my life, but I have too much on Earth to just up and leave forever. I've got my kids and my family and you lot, not to mention the wreck my world would turn into if I just vanished off the face of the Earth. They're already twitchy enough since I've started working for Torchwood, out of the public eye, but at least they know I'm still around. You know?" 

Lois sighed. "I know." And she did, sort of; Harry occasionally left magical newspapers on the conference table and there were often articles about him, even after almost two years of him working for Torchwood. 

"Hey, Harry?" the Doctor called and the two humans at the console looked towards him, Harry's eyebrow raised. "Could you round up the others so I can kick them out?" 

"Yeah, sure," Harry agreed before slipping up the stairs to the hallways. The TARDIS helpfully nudged him in the right direction and he found the three of them snooping through Jack's room. "So, _does_ he keep hordes of lube in here?" he enquired as he leaned against the door frame. 

Ianto and Mickey both jumped, looking mildly guilty, and looked over from where they were going through Jack's sock drawer. Martha shot him a grin and said, "You mean you haven't checked yourself?" 

Harry snorted. "I don't make a habit of snooping through everyone's things," he replied. He'd looked through Rose's room at one point not long after she'd left, and he'd gone through Donna's things to return the less dangerous items to her family, but otherwise he kept out of the others' rooms. 

Ianto cleared his throat. "Did you need us for something?" 

"Mm, yeah. The Doctor sent me to get you so he could kick you out." 

"But we were just about to go through _your_ room!" Martha complained as they all moved to follow him out. 

Harry shrugged. "Feel free; I don't keep anything in there." 

"You're here almost more often than you're at your flat, mate," Mickey pointed out. "How can you not have things here?" 

"It's all in the Doctor's room," Martha informed her husband. 

Harry snorted. "I've got some changes of clothing and a couple books I can't read without the TARDIS around to translate them, but otherwise I keep everything at my flat or on my desk." For all that he loved the Doctor and the TARDIS, it was always a little too chancy to leave things in a place that was constantly being placed in danger, and he preferred having things at home to remind himself of the Doctor when he was stuck on Earth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, herein lies the end of what I intend to write for this series. If someone else gets a wild hair up their arse one day and wants to tackle a continuation, have at. I've washed my hands of it, at this point.
> 
> Side-ways related: I've decided I won't be leaving discontinued fics on FFN or AO3, but I'm gonna make an exception for this one, since it's part of a series. That said, if I get too many people shooting me reviews asking me to continue it, I will take down the WHOLE series, not just this fic. So, you know, don't be a dick.


End file.
